Scorned of Beacon: Origins
by Ghaul Singular
Summary: A prequel for my future story 'Scorned of Beacon': The eight barons of the Scorn are notorious criminals and monsters. But what if they weren't born into the world of Destiny, but instead, one of bloody evolution. Will these eight emerge as heroes in this world, or is it their destiny (Yang approves) to be criminals?
1. Fanatic Part 1

**A/N: This will be the prologue for my first story** _ **Scorned of Beacon,**_ **a 'what if…?' of the eight scorn barons from Destiny 2: Forsaken being students of Beacon** _ **.**_ **I hope this will interest you guys and that you will continue to read my story when it comes out. I will update whenever I have time and inspiration, and with that said, I hope you enjoy!**

 _ **P.S. Destiny 2 is owned by Bungie and RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _One does not generally complain when they are the heir of one of Atlas' wealthiest families. However, like in many other aspects, Fikrul, or as the public knew him, Frederick Kingsworth, was an anomaly. Fikrul used to enjoy his parents' seemingly endless wealth; able to have whatever he wanted. There was only one exception to this rule however, and it was an endless torture on his part._

 _He was never to show his faunus heritage._

 _Indeed, Fikrul, as well as his father, Craask, or Craig Kingsworth, the founder of the Kingsworth Weapons Company a.k.a. the KWC, were both spider faunus. While their native names were easily changed, Fikrul and his father were not able to easily conceal their physical features. They both had an extra pair of arms. If their faunus heritage was revealed to the rest of Atlas, it would tear down any good reputation the KWC had. Fikrul was more than willing to hide this part of him though, if it protected his family._

 _That was before his sixteenth birthday._

 _Before the incident_

 _Before his mother tried to take his life._

* * *

Fikrul was ecstatic. Today was that he had waited for so long. After today, Fikrul would be able to finally be able to discuss plans for the KWC with business partners, allowing him to have his well-deserved say. His lower arms squirmed under his white dress shirt as he put on the coat of his suit, the black colour matching his dress pants and shoes. Fikrul left the tie out of his appearance, already feeling restricted with his arms. As he looked at his short pitch black hair and glowing blue eyes in the mirror, Fikrul remembered the countless hours of oral training he received, reciting key pointers in his head. The intercom buzzed, the booming voice of Craask coming through: "Frederick, come to my office once you've made yourself… presentable." The intercom cut off, and Fikrul set off to talk with his father.

The young heir exited into one of the massive halls of the Kingsworth Manor, and started the long walk towards his father's office. Frantic butlers and servants rushing around, preparing for the many guests that would be arriving that evening broke the usual quiet. Fikrul ducked and wove between them, making a beeline for the main office.

After several minutes, he finally arrived at the large, engraved doors, and he let himself in. While the exterior was dull, with the simple doors (if they can even be called that), the interior never ceased to amaze Fikrul. Safe to say, the colour gold was to the Kingsworth family as white is to the Schnees, and was the prominent colour of Craask's own suit. Craask looked much like his son, only he was taller, and his hair had started to gray, though his goatee held strong. However, this time was different, as Fikrul's eyes were on the dullest object in the room. A metal staff, with the largest uncut dust crystal in all of remnant at the tip, held in all four of Craask's arms. Seeing that Fikrul's undivided attention was on the staff, Craask playfully chastises his son. "It is rude to enter someone's office without even acknowledging them." Fikrul's head shot up at speeds one would think would have given him whiplash.

"Apologies, father, but… you do not usually have…" Fikrul gestured to the staff, attempting to find words he did not have.

"Of course," Craask answered with a chuckle. "While I do not usually keep this staff outside of the vault, I'd think it would be appropriate for our heir to wield it before the man who gifted it's main ornament to us."

Fikrul closed his eyes and nodded in understanding before his father's words clicked in his head. His eyes shot open and he lost any and all composure he had before, starting to sputter out words. "W-wait wait wait… you want _me_ ," Fikrul points to himself, and Craask nods, "to have _your_ staff," Fikrul then points to Craask, who nods once again, "when I meet with _the_ Jacques Schnee!"

"Yes," was Craask's reply.

"But… why?" Fikrul's question was justified. The Schnees gave the electric dust crystal to the Kingsworths as a sign of good faith for future business deals. According to the public, Craask fashioned a staff to hold the crystal so that he could have it with him at all times, but Fikrul, and few others, knew this wasn't the case. In fact, the seemingly pointless metal shaft was the KWC's greatest invention: a weapon capable of unifying the powers of aura and dust, giving the wielder the control of the dust's respective element without using any of the crystal, instead using the replenishable power of aura. Such a weapon couldn't be revealed though, for fear that the wrong people wold get their hands on it.

So it was a great surprise that Craask wanted Fikrul to have it in front have the man infamous for his controversial labour forces and questionable business partners.

"Yes son, I will not be able to attend your meeting tonight, and you are soon to inherit the company. Therefore, you are inheriting this as well." Craask holds the staff out to Fikrul, who took it with shaking arms. "Well, now that we've settled that, I must be off, but I wish you the best for tonight."

"Of course father, I only wish you could be here with me." Fikrul's reply was had a hint of sadness within it, but Craask was already gone before he finished.

* * *

 _*Later that night*_

Now was the time.

Fikrul stood before the grand double doors, covered in ornate golden engravings, which would signal his entry into a new life, a life of choice and politics and business.

On the other side of the door waited Jacques Schnee and all the other elite of Atlas.

Making sure his extra appendages were well concealed and that he held the staff properly, Fikrul raised a hand to handle, prepared to embrace his destiny.

"Fredrick!"

The icy voice pierced the silence, and Fikrul visible winced. Of course, the last person he wanted to deal with would be here. Fikrul turned around to see his mother, Mara, approaching in a stunning ocean blue dress that hugged her curves, seeming to glow in the moonlight. That glow was different than the one that seemed to always emit from her porcelain skin and blue eyes. While Fikrul loved his father dearly, he despised his mother. Craask was a proud faunus, who risked everything to make his human persona and build his company so that he may help other faunus from the biggest source of discrimination. Meanwhile, Mara Sov was the daughter of a politician who died a few years prior to Fikrul's birth. She saw the quickly growing wealth and influence of the KWC and tried married into the family name purely for the power she would gain. Craask knew of this and initially denied her.

Until she threatened to reveal his faunus heritage to all of Atlas.

How she knew, Craask had no clue, but the threat of his secret was enough for Mara to get what she wanted.

So it was no surprise that when she reached him, her focus was on the staff he held in a white-knuckle grip.

"I'm appalled that you were going to meet with our future partners without me." Even with her heals, Mara was only up to the shoulder of her 5'8" son. Her voice would have sounded playful to anyone else, but Craask had trained Fikrul to see through the mask that his mother always held, as well as other useful things.

"Of course not mother," Fikrul ground out his answer. "Although, seeing as _I'm_ the one inheriting the company, I thought that I would be able to attend to _my_ guests without supervision." Fikrul did not hold back on his sarcasm, such was the norm as of later years.

"I see the company is not the only thing your father is giving to you."

"Indeed, now if you'll excuse, I have guests to welcome." Fikrul turned back to the doors opening both to reveal a large ballroom, packed with all of the evening's guests, with servants serving drinks on platters. All eyes went to the two who had just entered, seeming to wait for an invitation to continue. "Welcome, everyone, to the Kingsworth Manor."

* * *

The night had gone off without a hitch, and Fikrul had several conversations with many interesting potential partners and investors, and one with General Ironwood. However, as the night was reaching its end, and guests started leaving, Fikrul was approached by the man that he had anticipated for the whole day.

"Mister Kingsworth, it is good to see you tonight bearing my gift." Fikrul turned to address Jacques, arms fidgeting under his shirt. He wore his usual white suit with a blue undershirt. What surprised Fikrul were the two girls behind him, both he was familiar with. To Fikrul's left was Winter Schnee, first daughter of Jacques and a talented future huntress in training, starting at Atlas Academy next year. She was sixteen as well, and when they were younger, they used to play together in the large gardens of the manor. Fikrul would be lying if he said that he didn't crush on her back then, but knowing that she could never be with a faunus was enough to quench it. Until the next time he would see her. To Fikrul's right was Winter's little sister, Weiss Schnee, the new heir to the SDC. From what he remembered, Weiss was on the path of becoming both the heir for her family's company and a huntress. An impressive burden for a twelve year old girl.

"Indeed Mister Schnee, my father believed it would be good for me to inherit it with the company," Fikrul replied to Jacques' earlier statement, hoping his nervousness would not show, "and good evening to you Winter and Weiss." The sisters returned his greeting as they both nodded and smiled; Winter's seeming more genuine than Weiss'.

"I assume that tonight is quite… exciting for you, so I won't bother you with any business talk tonight, but tomorrow, I expect great ideas and decisions from you." The Schnee finished with a smile on his face, one that said he had plans for the KWC. "Well Winter, Weiss, feel free to socialise, but I don't believe there is much left of tonight." Jacques statement visibly shocked both sisters, for as far as Fikrul could remember, he never let them out of his sight when they went to events such as this. Before he could inquire further though, Jacques had already excused himself to talk with the few guests left.

"So… Frederick," Winter spoke up, Her silky voice slightly startling the young heir as he was still watching Jacques' retreating form, "its… been awhile." The awkwardness did not go unnoticed by Fikrul, Weiss scoffing before excusing herself saying something about going back to the bullhead with Klein. Fikrul, and Weiss it seemed, knew the source of Winter's awkwardness; she returned the feelings he held for her, making it twice as hard for him to _attempt_ to suppress his own.

"Y-yes, a f-few months have passed since we last met." Fikrul couldn't believe he stuttered _twice_ in front of Winter! He could feel his cheeks burning, his arms threatening to burst his shirt open from their shakiness. He was as hopeless as when he first discovered his feelings. No wonder Weiss left as soon as they started talking.

However, Winter smirked at his reply, returning quite smugly with "you mean 'a few months have passed since you kicked my butt in training.' Because I'm pretty sure that was how it turned out." Fikrul awkwardly laughed at her joke, knowing that he did indeed meet the floor quite a few times after they last sparred.

And yes, Fikrul did have combat training. Craask saw it as necessary to have his son able to wield a blade, as well as the staff he currently held.

"Yes, well… it is getting quite late, and there aren't many people left. I think I'll call it a night." Stupid stupid _stupid_. Fikrul didn't know how to continue the conversation, so he _stupidly_ just finished it.

"O-oh, yes I suppose so, I doubt my father will want to stay any longer either." The hint of sadness on Winter's face tore Fikrul's heart apart, and he felt terrible. Winter was started to leave before he spoke up again.

"G-good night Winter."

She turned back to him and smiled with enough warmth to melt a whole Atlesian winter (somewhere, a certain blonde brawler sneezes).

"Good night, Frederick, and happy birthday," and then she was gone.

* * *

Jacques had finally gotten to have his private conversation with Mara. Not that he needed any, but he just wanted to be sure of their plans.

"Good evening Mara, you must be so proud of your boy." There were still people around them, so he had to start casually.

"Oh indeed, he's grown into such a lovely young man," Mara returned, knowing this dance all to well.

As Jacques saw that no one was paying attention after the pointless banter, he continued onto the more pressing matter. "Is your 'surprise' for him ready?" He knew the answer, but hearing her say it reassured him.

"Yes, a tragedy it will be," she says, feigning being distraught. "CEO of the largest weapons company in Atlas dies in an unavoidable accident during his travel, and his heir is assassinated by the White Fang, leaving the widow of the family to begrudgingly take up the head of the KWC." She finished her account of events to be with a smile on her face.

"And gains access to the most powerful weapon of war created," Jacques finishes for her, referring to the aura-dust weapon that Craask tried so hard to keep from them.

"Indeed, but, that is in my hands now. You should be going, lest suspicion arises."

Jacques bid his goodbyes then, and left find Winter and heading back to their bullhead, satisfied that plans were going ahead normally.

* * *

 _*Halls of Kingsworth Manor, late at night*_

Fikrul was thoroughly exhausted after the last of the guests left. He attempted to leave prior to that, but his mother insisted that he should see everyone off. But as he was returning to his room, he heard a noise behind him. He did not falter in his pace as to not give whatever it was that he _knew_ was behind him any idea that he was aware of them. This was a scenario that his father had trained him for, if anyone is following you, lure them into a favourable position. As Fikrul kept walking, he saw a corner that would be a perfect place to ambush this person.

Fikrul went to turn the corner, a smirk on his face, but as he fully entered the new corridor, the man behind him yelled, "WAIT!" But it was too late, and the last thing Fikrul saw before everything went dark was gun pointed to his head.

* * *

 **A/N: Now that is part one of Fikrul done, and I can't wait to write about the other barons. As a side note, this story is just meant to talk about the barons prior to joining Beacon and how they all meet, because obviously Fikrul has no idea about them yet. (P.S. mid way through writing this A/N I realised that some of you may not know what the proper names of the barons are, so I'll say them here: Fikrul=Fanatic, Elykris=Machinist, Reksis Vahn=Hangman, Hiraks=Mindbender, Pirrha=Rifleman, Araskes=Trickster, Kaniks=Mad Bomber and Yaviks=Rider sry justwanted to make sure everyone was on same page.) Here are a few plot points for the story: For starters, this takes place five years before the events of RWBY volume 1, and I hinted at that with Weiss' age. Secondly, I want to explain how the barons are related: they are all half-siblings, with Elykris and Reksis being twins, as well as Araskes and Kaniks. They are all the children of Craask (who I named after the revealed kell of kings), and this will be touched on next chapter. Also, the staff in the story is my way of explaining Fikrul's weapon into the story, and it looks just like that. Anyway, I think I've ranted here enough, but I'll put more info in the next A/N, but until then, see ya!**


	2. Queen

**A/N: Hey guys I'm back, so before I start this story, just some more info. The ages of the characters are: Fikrul=16, Elykris/Reksis=15, Hiraks=14, Pirrha=12, Araskes/Kaniks=11, Yaviks=10, Mara and Uldren appear early thirties. With that said, let's get on with the story!**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _We know the tale of how Remnant came to be, the result of Salem's greed and manipulation of the gods. However, there is another similar story that coincides with the events of the former._

 _This is how it goes:_

 _Once upon a time, before the moon was shattered, there was a queen named Mara Senna. She ruled her land benevolently, and the people of her kingdom loved her. One day, she captured the attention of the gods. The two brothers saw in her the four ideals humanity was built on: creation, for she built herself an empire that would surely last for millennia after her death, destruction, for any who opposed her kingdom were crushed underfoot, choice, for any major decision in her kingdom was decided by her, and she never chose wrong, and knowledge, for she knew everything that a mortal could, and knew who to share that knowledge with._

 _The gods, impressed by this young queen, came to her in a dream. They told her that if she were to impart her values of the human ideals to the rest of humanity, they would in turn grant her with a fraction of each of their powers: light and dark. The queen agreed, and when she awoke, she was not the same. Her body, before porcelain, was now pale blue. She could feel the light and the dark mixing with her own magic. With this knew form, Mara saw it fit to rename herself, dubbing herself Mara Sov. Mara did as the brothers asked, and imparted her values on not just her people, but neighbouring kingdoms and villages as well, telling them to spread them in turn. She renamed her kingdom 'the kingdom of the awoken,' for its inhabitants were enlightened to their true purpose._

 _While her godly magic prevented her from aging, it did not stop the world around her from disappearing, including her brother. Uldwyn, the prince of the 'awoken' people, was very dear to Mara, and one day, died of sickness. Mara mourned her brother, and begged the gods to bring him back, but they refused, saying it would disrupt the balance of life. Mara, unpleased with their answer, sought council with her Techeuns, women with extreme magical power. They told her that only the gods had the power to bring back life._

 _And that was the key._

 _Mara wielded the power of both brothers, meaning that, with enough magic, she could resurrect her brother. However, Mara knew that the gods would undo whatever progress she made, so she outplayed them. She asked for one of her citizens to give their life for their prince, and one of her finest warriors, Sjur Eido, volunteered. Mara sent the soul of Sjur into the afterlife crippling her body with age and sickness after she was gone. She then restored Uldwyn's body, bringing back the body's youth and health. Additionally, she put a fraction of the gods' power into the body changing the tanned complexion to a similar tone as hers. Finally, she grabbed Uldwyn from the afterlife and placed him into the body._

 _And so, Uldren was born._

 _The gods were furious, and came before the royalty and the Techeuns, berating Mara for her betrayal. She only smirked in return, knowing that she had already outplayed them. She told the gods that she had used the four ideals of humanity in this ritual; she knew that bringing back her brother would disrupt the balance of life, and so she kept balance by meeting creation of new life with the destruction of another, allowing the sacrifice to choose whether or not to continue. The gods were speechless before her, the elder radiating disappointment, while the younger seemed oddly satisfied._

 _They then left, stating that another pressing matter required their attention. But Mara paid them no heed, for she was revelling in the feeling of standing as an equal to gods, while also manipulating them._

 _The Techeuns went to look outside, but Mara didn't care. This knowledge that she could so easily manipulate GODS, it was almost addicting._

 _The Techeuns shouted for her, and Mara would have addressed them if her brother hadn't stirred in her arms. "Uldren?"_

 _His beautiful amber eyes opened slowly, focussing on her glowing blue ones._

" _Ma-"_

 _That was when the cataclysm hit. In an instant, a purple wave of power flooded the world, and Mara could sense that only one other human life remained. Tears threatened to fall down Mara's cheek as she stared at where her brother was moments ago, now only her shaking arms. She looked to where her Techeuns were, only to see them gone as well. She stood up and approached the window that overlooked her kingdom, feeling the light of the elder brother leave. Mara stared into the empty streets, thinking that it was her actions that killed humanity; although unknown to her it was another's selfish decisions. Mara felt the younger brother leave before she saw the giant beam of darkness retreating from this Remnant of civilisation, shattering its moon in the progress._

 _And as the shards fell, so did Mara's tears._

* * *

Mara watched as humanity grew again, struggling against the creatures of Grimm now that they had no magic. For millennia, she stayed in her castle, letting the Grimm deal with any unwanted intruders. She tried on numerous occasions to bring back her brother, but was unable to feel him in the afterlife, as if he wasn't there. After the first century, she stopped looking for her brother and entered a great depression.

Until she felt a calling, one she hadn't felt for thousands of years.

The feeling of two magical forces clashing in combat.

Mara had thought herself the last person able to use magic in Remnant, but now it seemed that she was not quite as alone as she thought. So for the first time since before modern humans, Mara left her castle.

* * *

The sight that Mara came upon was…. Interesting to say the least. A castle, completely destroyed, laid under the light of dawn. Mara investigated the rubble, hoping to find some trace of the old humans. As the former queen say a toy dog in the rubble, she heard sobbing. Following the sound, Mara came upon what must have been the aftermath of a final showdown. A path of blood led to charred ground, and above it, was a woman, with Grimm white skin with silky hair to match, wearing a black dress with a cloak attached, kneeling and bawling.

Mara, despite the sight, was ecstatic. Finally, after such a long time alone, here was someone who hopefully knew of the world that Mara was born into.

And so the former queen made her presence known, her voice carrying curiosity, "Why do mourn what was clearly an enemy?" Mara saw the woman stiffen, and her sobbing ceased. She stood up slowly, and muttered just loud enough for the awoken to hear.

"What did you say?"

Mara now summoned her regal, commanding voice, "I asked you why you mourn your former foe, now answer my question." The mysterious woman's body began shaking, and Mara believed she was going to start crying again.

"Because…" Mara could now identify, that it was, in fact, rage that shook her body and filled her voice. And as she turned magic in her hands ready to be used, icy blue orbs met blood red ones. "I LOVED HIM!"

The red magic shot at Mara so fast, that she was only barely able to summon a defensive spell. The countless years of neglecting her magic leading to inexperience. After the blast ceased, Mara was panting, the use of magic more taxing than she ever remembered it being. However, the shock on the woman's face told Mara that she had her attention.

"Y-you… h-how did you do that?"

The same smirk that Mara had before the gods came onto her face.

"Magic."

* * *

After a day or few (hundred) of talking, Mara and the now revealed Salem knew each other as if they were friends for years. The Grimm woman understood the void that Uldren left in Mara, as well as her god-born powers, and the former queen understood Salem's tragic romance and 'break-up,' as well as her curse of immortality. Both immortals felt that they had found a friend in the other; a being that understood the things they knew was unheard of in this new world.

One day, however, Salem brought up something that Mara took great interest in.

"We've both been cursed by the gods, forever to be alone from those we hold dearest," Salem started. Mara looked from the window to the throne the Grimm woman sat in. They were standing in Salem's new castle in the former land of the younger god. Mara nodded.

"Yes, I believe we both are aware of this, so why do you bring it up again?"

Salem stood from her throne and walked to stand beside Mara at the window, looking at the emerging beowolves.

"And you are aware that there are four relics that can summon those gods that… _scorned_ us?"

Mara nodded hesitantly, not knowing where Salem was going with this.

"Yes, you told me that if Ozma," Salem stiffened, but showed no signs of aggression from her former lover being brought up, "unites the people of Remnant and summons them, they will live among us again, but will otherwise wipe out this world."

Salem smiled, looking into Mara's blue eyes.

"Correct, but," Mara could see some form of mirth in Salem's eyes, "what if _we_ were to summon them, and get our revenge." Throughout their time together, the two queens had each come up with bizarre ideas for revenge against Ozma or world domination, but this takes the cake, and Mara wasn't afraid to show her shock."

"Salem, "her tone was curious, "do explain.

Salem was now full on smiling, knowing that she would convince her partner.

"If we summon the gods, we can try to kill them," Mara looked at the witch with doubt, but she continued, "and if we fail, we can use your ritual to create a new world when they destroy this one."

Mara… liked that idea. A lot. It was the perfect way to get revenge, and spite the ones that had punished them. She had but one concern, "What do we do about Ozma then?"

Salem was wearing the Cheshire's smile.

"We make it impossible to rally humanity, after all, the hearts of man are swayed easily.

* * *

For centuries after, the two queens gained followers, only a few a generation, and attacked every defence Ozma put up, destroyed any alliance he made, all while waiting for the perfect moment to strike in this game of chess. Now, Mara was a patient woman, and a good strategist, but she just wanted to do something other than wait for Ozma's (now Ozpin) next move.

So when Arthur Watts spoke of a company led by a single man gaining influence and power in Atlas, Mara knew that she could strike now. When she proposed the idea to Salem, she approved of it, recommending she took her place as soon as possible.

Now, Mara was going to hit Remnant like a storm.

* * *

 **A/N: and then Mara marries Craask, conspires with Jacques, you know the rest. Anyway, I really enjoyed writing the first part of this chapter in the theme of a fairy tale. Not much else to say, except… SALEM AND MARA ARE NOT A THING IN THIS STORY, just want to make that clear, as there were some moments were people may have thought that. With that said, I will see you next time.**


	3. Crow

**A/N: I'm going to try to stick as close to both the RWBY plot, and origins/situations that the D2 characters went through. I apologise if it isn't completely accurate, but I'm trying my best.**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Despite the disrespect she showed, the younger brother was impressed. Here was a creation of both brothers, able to stand and talk as if she were their equal. The dark god would have struck down her entire kingdom, then and there, but he felt a presence in his brother's domain. Both gods knew that now, that was the more important issue._

 _Some may sat the_ easier _option._

 _When Salem's army attempted to harm him with his own gift of destruction, the younger brother was not amused. He stared at the ball of their collective magic in his draconic hand, when an idea came to mind._

 _One that would teach both this woman and the awoken queen a lesson. The dark god created a cataclysm that would wipe out all of humanity, with three exceptions._

 _The first, Salem. She would walk the face of the earth, alone and heartbroken, only seeking peace if she learned the value of life and death._

 _The second, Mara. While she was able to manipulate the brothers maintaining the balance of life and death, her mockery and pride would be her downfall. She would be without her people, without her Techeuns._

 _Without her brother._

 _She could try to pull Uldwyn, now Uldren, from the afterlife, but he would not be there._

 _Which led to the third survivor, Uldren. The younger god's cataclysm did not destroy the prince, but displaced him in time and space. He would awake in a magic less world, with humanity struggling to regain a footing, but that is not to say he would emerge unscathed. Uldren would be reborn into that world, with the god's presence within him._

* * *

Uldren didn't know where he was.

The last moments he could recall were of him hearing his sister's voice and seeing her beautiful blue eyes, before darkness engulfed his vision. Not darkness in the way that one can't see, as a force, pure dark energy. And now, he was in a forest, not in the grand castle of Mara. Uldren was wearing armour on his torso and arms made of black scales, from a serpent Grimm, known as a King Taijitu. Under that he wore a white shirt. He wore baggy red pants, with greaves of the same scaly armour over them.

This wardrobe was not familiar to Uldren, but he didn't pay it much mind. He went over to a pool of water nearby and looked at a reflection that was only somewhat his. The short, unkempt black hair and orange-amber eyes were familiar, even his face was the same, if not from when he was in his thirties. It was his skin that was unfamiliar, but welcome. It held the same pigment as his sister after she received her godlike magic, though it was a little darker than hers. This gave him comfort that Mara had exalted him, brought him to her level. He could even feel the light and dark within him, though the darkness seemed more there, possibly a result of it being foreign to him.

Uldren's reflection smiled back at him, but upon closer look, he saw that there was some black in the eyes of his reflection. He went to rub it out, but as he did, the powers he felt began fading away. He ceased his attempts, believing that this must have been a side effect of his transformation. A loud thud came from his left, and Uldren quickly turned to see a bloodied man in a cloak, dead on the ground, and behind his corpse was an Alpha Beowolf. He stared at the creature of Grimm, and it stared back, neither hostile, just curious. It was then that Mara called to him.

"Do you see brother, I have rebirthed you in light and darkness, saved you from mortality," Mara came from behind the Alpha, stroking its mask on the way towards her brother, though it wasn't even fazed.

As if Mara wasn't even there.

Uldren stared in awe as Mara stood before him, perfectly unscathed.

"Brother, even the Grimm recognise you as one with their master," she turned to look at the Beowolf, and so did Uldren, seeing that it know seemed to await his command. Many small Nevermores had gathered on the branches. "Go ahead; order it to do whatever you want."

Uldren's eyes went from the Beowolf to the man on the ground, of whom he felt no mercy for. In the moonlight, a piece of metal shone on the man's hip, unlike anything Uldren had seen before. "Bring me what is on the man's hip." After a few seconds, the Alpha kneeled down and picked up the metal with its maw, approaching the siblings before dropping the trinket in the former prince's outstretched palm. "What is this, Mara," Uldren sought Mara's seemingly endless knowledge, for this item, with what appeared to be a bit off blunt metal attached to a grip, was unlike anything he had ever seen. When he got no response, he turned to his left where she was moments before, but was now nowhere to be seen. He frantically looked around, but it had appeared that she vanished.

"It is a weapon of war, used by the humans of this era." Uldren turned to his sister, who was floating above the water. "It is a tool commonly known as a gun, able to fire small projectiles at whatever it is pointed at." Now Uldren was just confused, and he voiced that to his sister.

"But… why would they need such a thing when they have magic."

Mara appeared grim. "Because this is not the world you are familiar with," Uldren's eyes widened in shock. Let me explain; the gods have left humanity, wiping them out and resetting them. We survived because we have their powers. Now, without magic, they are struggling to survive against the endless hordes of Grimm. To cope, they, and their new sister species the faunus, utilise a substance called dust, that has the ability to control the elements. Additionally, they have made new technologies, including the pistol you wield." Uldren was still very confused, and it must have shown through, because his sister came up to him. "Let me impart my knowledge onto you."

Mara touched her hand to his forehead, and in an instant, Uldren _knew._ He knew of the history of this _Remnant,_ knew how many fairy tales were based on the uses of magic, knew of the discrimination against faunus, knew of the four kingdoms, and he knew of all the technologies of this new world, including how to use his new hand cannon.

She removed her hand, and finished her speech, "I am not fully in this world Uldren. I am a prisoner in my own body, controlled by a witch named Salem. In order to free me, you must unite the people, end their conflicts, and summon the gods back to this world. Only they have the power to free of the witch's grasp. Find a man who calls himself Ozpin, he will tell you more, but for now I must go. I cannot hold my form in this world for long. I will see you ag-," and then she was gone. Uldren, however, did not know how he was to unite so many people under one banner. Until a thought came to him. The four ideals that convinced the gods to grant Mara her power. As long as he followed those ancient ways, he would make the right decision. He came to a single conclusion, a way that would unite all the kingdoms together; he would cut away any who **chose** not to change. The source of disunity stemmed from humans in power, and major conflicts against the Grimm united them. Through the **destruction** of all the bad, the survivors, **knowing** it is their only hope, will **create** a single nation, one inclusive of all.

Yes, this would work. Uldren picked up the bloodied cloak and putting it on, heading to the nearest village. Mara would be proud of his decision.

* * *

The younger god was ecstatic that his plan had worked. He had seeded a corruption, a darkness inside the former prince. And just as Mara manipulated himself, he manipulated Uldren into going against the plans of his sister, placing him on the path to Ozma. He didn't care for the awoken's method of uniting the people, just that he was committed to ruining the plans of Salem and Mara.

Now he just had to sit back and watch the fireworks, so they say.

* * *

 _*Decades later*_

Summer didn't know why Ozpin put her on this manhunt.

When she and Qrow got back from their last mission, the professor called them to his office immediately. He told them of rumours of a man that would lead armies of Grimm into villages, leaving few survivors. There were a few names for this mysterious figure, but most called him the Master of Crows, because tiny Nevermores would gather at his next target. Ozpin seemed distressed about someone coordinating Grimm, but didn't believe it to be Salem or Mara.

But here she was, scouting the forests outside of a town with plenty of the 'crows' hanging about. Qrow (somewhere in Patch, a little blonde girl with lilac eyes giggles) was trying to comfort the villagers, but his main objective was to eliminate any Grimm that got past her. Their plan was simple yet effective; once she founded the dark army, or the man supposedly in charge, she would signal Qrow with a tracker, and use her silver eyes, eliminating most of the Grimm and hopefully weakening the Master of Crows.

Summer was thinking about her little Ruby Rose back home when she came upon a Beringel. She instinctively drew her sword, but the vile ape did not attack, merely staring at her in what seemed like curiosity. Behaviour like this from such an intelligent species of Grimm was a myth, but here the silver-eyed warrior was, standing before a pacifistic Beringel.

Then she felt it.

A dark presence was looming in the air. If Summer were to compare it to anything, she would say that felt like the aftermath of her silver eyes, but darker, heavy and vile.

"Who are you?" The Beringel moved aside, and as Summer activated her tracker, silver met black.

* * *

Uldren was curious as to who this white cloaked figure was. She was so much like himself, except where darkness lingered in him and his eyes, hers radiated light. In one swift move, she tried to take his head off with her blade, but Uldren ducked just in time followed by a roll away. He drew the Ace of Spades, the first item he obtained in this world, and fired three enhanced shots at her. She managed to dodge the first two, but the third connected with her shoulder, passing through her aura and into the flesh and bone. She cried out in pain, collapsing onto the ground and dropping her sword.

Uldren slowly walked towards her, firing at her sword to keep it away from her. "I said, 'who are you?'" She got onto her knees and stared defiantly into his eyes as he stood above her. But something was happening, her eyes began to glow, and he could feel the light building up inside of her, spilling into the world around them. For the first time in years, Mara spoke to Uldren, but she was screaming, yelling in his ear that he needed to kill this woman _now!_ He pointed the Ace at her head, and as he pulled the trigger, silver engulfed his vision.

Unknown to Uldren, the corruption that had lingered in him was eradicated.

* * *

When Uldren awoke, he felt… lighter. That was the only way he could describe it, like a weight was lifted from his chest. As he stared at the ceiling of what must have been a medical room, he realised one astonishing fact; he no longer had the darkness in his eyes. At the same time, Uldren felt like his mind had been cleared, for he no longer held the one-track mindset of freeing his sister, but was able to think of other things, such as how the fluorescent lights were too bright, or how the iodoform stung his nostrils.

Overall, Uldren felt like he was alive. He sat up on the bed, looking around the room. The whole room was made of the same white tiles. It annoyed the awoken. To his right were the doors of an elevator, but Uldren saw no button to hail it; in front of him there was a single wooden chair, with a table beside it, only large enough to hold a few items. A similar table sat beside his bed, with a single item on it. Uldren inspected the small device, and after determining its singular purpose, pressed the comically large red button.

After waiting for a few minutes, the prince put the device back on the table, and as soon as he did, the elevator opened to reveal three people. The first to enter was a woman, early thirties from Uldren's guess, who scowled at the awoken. She had blonde hair in a bun, with a curl falling down over her right cheek. She wore a white, long-sleeved pleated top and a black pencil skirt that stopped just under her chest. She had black high-heeled boots and brownish stockings underneath. Finally, she wore black cape with a purple interior, and Uldren could only compare it to this era's view on what witches are. She wielded a riding crop in her right hand as she pushed her glasses over her green eyes.

When the second person, a man of similar age to the woman, entered, Uldren sensed two things oozing off him: hate and alcohol. A leg on the table next to the prince broke, but he paid it no mind. The man wore a grey dress shirt with a long tail, accompanied by black dress pants and dress shoes. He also had a tattered red cloak. He had a ring on his index finger, and two more on his right ring finger as well as necklace, featuring a crooked cross. He had an unusually large sword across his back, but that's Remnant for you. The man glared at Uldren with his crimson eyes, but the unkempt stubble negated its effectiveness on the awoken, who found his unkempt featherlike black hair more interesting.

Both figures stood behind the lone chair as the final person entered the room. He appeared middle age, with tousled silver hair and brown eyes behind shaded spectacles. He wore an unzipped black suit over a dark green, buttoned vest and green shirt. Additionally, he has black trouser shoes and long dark green pants. In his right hand was a cane, and his left held a coffee mug, with a symbol Uldren identified as that of Beacon academy on it. He sat in the chair, placing his coffee on the table. His face was unreadable. All three now stared at the prince, and he waited for them to start.

"Are you the Master of Crows?" the seated man, clearly the person in charge, spoke first.

"Yes," was his simple reply. They then continued to have a back and forth discussion.

"Why did you lead Grimm into villages?"

"She told me to."

"Why did you kill the huntress Summer Rose, the one with silver eyes?"

"She told me to."

"Who is she?"

"My sister."

"Is she Mara Sov?"

Uldren's eyes widened as he stared at this man in shock. "H-how do _you_ know about her? Who are you?"

The man leaned forward, "My name is Professor Ozpin."

After hearing that name, the name engraved into his mind, all hostility left Uldren.

After that, Uldren told Ozpin everything, his mission to unite the people, though he himself didn't know why he thought murdering them was a good idea, his sister's imprisonment by Salem, which Ozpin doubted, but let slide, and his origins, those that predate Remnant. The professor had asked his companions to leave then, and told Uldren about his war against Salem and Mara, his same mission, though for the purpose of inviting the gods to once again live among humans, and of his own origins.

Short story short, Uldren and Ozpin emerged from that room agreeing to work together.

* * *

And here the prince was, years later in Atlas, with his own personal mission: saving his nephew.

Qrow had uncovered a plan between Mara (who Uldren still believed to be a puppet) and Jacques, one to kill Craig and Frederick Kingsworth of the KWC, even though their group knew that that they were actually faunus, with the names Craask and Fikrul. From Ozpins view, letting Mara gain that much influence in Atlas would compromise the kingdom as well as the fact that she would gainthe aura-dust weapon, but for Uldren, it was personal. Mara was not in control of her actions, she would never kill her own blood. Therefore, it was his duty to save the boy and keep him safe until they saved Mara. Uldren was also certain that the boy possessed magic, which would be useful against Salem. Ozpin's groups was certain that Craig could not be saved, for his bullhead was rigged to blow, and the pilot was on Mara's payroll. However, Frederick was a different story.

So here Uldren was, tailing Fikrul on the night of the assassination. The faunus was retiring to his room after his birthday ball, and the prince knew that the heir knew that he was there. This knowledge lead Fikrul to turn a wrong corner with the intention of an ambush, but that was where the assassin hid. Uldren ran, yelling "noooooooo!" but it was too late. The gunshot went off, and Fikrul fell back dead. Quick as lightning, the awoken drew Ace and put 13 enhanced rounds into the White Fang look-a-like. After the corpse fell, Uldren turned to his nephew, tears welling up in his eyes. He was too late. He collapsed to his knews and held the boy in his arms, tears now falling onto the faunus' lifeless face. However, as Uldren's body was rocked by sobs, he felt movement in his arms and turned to see dead, but alive eyes.

"Dad?"

* * *

 **A/N: That was a long one, for me at least. Now were getting back to the story, yaaaaay! Leave your reviews, and if anyone is willing to beta for me, that would be great, because my friend pointed out a tonne of errors in the last few chapters. But until then, see you next chapter!**


	4. Fanatic Part 2

_**Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Fikrul felt like he was floating._

 _After the bullet had connected with his head, Fikrul awoke in this place; a white abyss, and he was floating around in it. He was warm, as if hundreds of blankets, straight out of the dryer, had engulfed him. Fikrul was at peace, and his aura, his soul, felt stronger than he had ever remembered it being. A wave of understanding washed over him, this was the limbo that souls spent time in before they decided to move onto the afterlife. Fikrul felt a familiar presence leave this limbo, one he recognized as belonging to his father, Craask. Fikrul didn't know how or why he died, but he didn't care, nor did he feel sorrow. The great faunus was going to move on to a better life, and he would soon join him._

 _Understanding washed over him again, but this time it was about himself. Regrets that he would no longer have to worry about: not being able to give aid to his kind like Craask had done for decades, never admitting his feelings to the snowflake he so desired, letting his father's weapon into dangerous hands, never using his semblance to bring back those he died unfair deaths._

 _Wait._

 _Fikrul knew his semblance now! Never in his mortality had he discovered it, but now he knew it in perfect detail, as if he had had it for years; he was able to bring the souls of those that held his blood from this limbo into their bodies, also healed by him, but most importantly, he could use it on himself. Fikrul didn't have to go on with regrets, for he could return to the land of the living ensure that his company continued its aid for faunus. He focused his aura on his own soul, and activated his semblance, but…_

 _Something was terribly wrong._

 _A source of great darkness was near Fikrul's mortal form, and it was corrupting his soul. As soul and body began to become one, and Fikrul could feel something rocking his body. When the transfer was complete, and the faunus was among the living again, his soul carried darkness with it. Fikrul opened his eyes, body sluggish, and stared at a man with tan skin and black hair, amber eyes staring into the faunus' with disbelief. In that delusional state, Fikrul called for the person he wished was there._

* * *

"Dad?"

Uldren couldn't believe it! Surely, this kid, who came back to life of all things, was the son of Mara. Fikrul on the other hand, was recovering from his drowsiness, and the first thought to come to mind was that this must have been one of his killers. He disregarded that however, as he saw the White Fang imitator's corpse near them. Therefore, this man must have been trying to save him, or at least avenged his demise. The heir tried to get up, but the man held him down, and began talking.

"Don't try to get up; you're probably tired from coming back from the Ether." Fikrul nodded and the hooded man laid him on the ground. "Do you want to take your arms out?" Fikrul's eyes opened in shock, but the man answered a silent question. "The people I work for know a lot of things that others don't, _Fikrul,_ but right now, you should answer my question."

Fikrul contemplated this, and thinking that this was his best choice, nodded. The man proceeded to remove the jacket and shirt off the heir, freeing his arms, which were quick to fall limp on the ground, exhaustion preventing him from lifting them.

"My name is Uldren, I'll explain everything later, but right now, we have to get you to Beacon."

"L-like… the academy?" Fikrul replied tiredly.

"Yes, that is where my associates are. Now I'm going to find us an exit, this place is swarming with assassins. Get in that room to hide, and wait for me to come back, got it?" Fikrul nodded.

The man, now identified as Uldren, opened the nearest door and lifted Fikrul, carrying him bridal style into what the heir identified as his father's sparring room. After placing him down, the rescuer went back outside, grabbing the discarded clothes and staff the _Fikrul was stupid enough to let go of_! He threw the clothes in a random closet, and brought the staff to the boy. He placed it into his shaking, outstretched hands, saying, "this belongs to you," and then he was gone, door locked behind him.

After ten minutes, Fikrul was able to lift himself of the ground and limp, with the aid of the staff, towards the only outstanding feature of the room. He stared at the four ceremonial blades, two daggers and two cutlasses, resting on the golden stand. These belonged to his father, and his father before him. These blades had a terrible history; long ago, faunus used such blades to cut off their animal features in order to blend in with humans. However, according to legend, these ancient blades were dipped in a pool of light before the moon was shattered, making any wounds they make heal, allowing the faunus to regrow their lost parts. There were so few blades like this, and his father was proud to have a full set.

Fikrul subconsciously grabbed the belt used to hold them and put it on. He then put down the staff, grabbed the blades in all four arms, cutlasses in his upper, and daggers in his lower, and did a few practice swings before sheathing them. As he picked up his staff, he heard a commotion outside, and trained his ears on it.

"Wasn't this Gerald's post?" a female.

"Yeah, which means that our target must be close if no one else has seen him," a male, with an air of authority around him. Fikrul creeped towards the door, grabbing the daggers.

"Then let's find him!" The woman impatiently threw open the door, only to be met with two daggers in her gut. Fikrul did not feel disgusted with his actions; he had been in the ether, and knew that paradise awaited this flawed woman. As she fell back however, the pulled out a shotgun and fired directly into Fikrul's chest. The heir was sent flying back into the room, bleeding, and dropped the daggers.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" The man slowly walked towards Fikrul, his features concealed by the White Fang uniform. Black smoke from within the boy started healing his wounds. "I've found both of my targets. Mara will be glad that I managed to retrieve her staff _and_ kill her son. Guess mommy didn't love her little faunus. Can't say your old man is doing any better." It didn't surprise Fikrul that his mother plotted this; it made too much sense that it should. "What is special about that staff anyway?"

The man went to grab the staff at the same time as Fikrul, and they both pulled, the heir holding the handle end while the assassin had the crystal end.

* * *

" _Remember Fikrul, this staff is_ still _a weapon, and you need to know how to use it." Craask was teaching his fourteen year old about his most powerful invention. "It converts the aura that you give it into elemental energy in the crystal, this one giving you power over electricity. Focus your aura into the staff, and when you feel a connection, just imagine what you want it to do."_

* * *

The crystal glowed as Fikrul summoned a great beam of electric energy that pierced the assassin's aura, completely disintegrating him. Fikrul was panting from the exertion of using his weapon, dropping falling onto his back. After a few minutes, Uldren reentered and saw the sight in the doorway. He looked at Fikrul with a raised brow, "Busy?"

"Yeah," was his simple response. The heir got up slowly and the hooded man handed him his daggers, which he sheathed. Fikrul willed the staff to become a ball of electricity, a far less taxing ordeal, and pocketed it. Uldren didn't bat an eye. The rescuer silently guided the faunus through the halls, every now and then coming up upon a body riddled with bullets. Finally, they got outside the manor, were a small, stealthy airship awaited them.

* * *

"Good morning Mr Kingsworth, or would you prefer me to call you Fikrul?" After they lest the manor in the stealth jet, Uldren took Fikrul to Beacon Academy as he said, and now here they were, sitting before the headmaster of the school.

"Yes, that would be fine." Ozpin merely smiled at the boy, taking a sip out of his mug. "Why am I here?" The headmaster put down his mug, preparing an answer.

"What I'm about to tell you, is extremely confidential, and only a handful of people know of it. Can I trust you with this knowledge?" Fikrul nodded, as did Uldren on his behalf. "Okay then."

"We are a group that fight the wars that the people of Remnant don't know of; wars against the Grimm and their masters. Those two masters are named Salem… and Mara Sov." Fikrul stiffened, But waited for Ozpin to continue, but he was interrupted.

"But Mara is just a puppet of Salem, being manipulated for her powers. I would know… she is my sister." Fikrul turned and stared slack-jawed at his supposed uncle, unable to even comment on that statement.

"Anyway," Ozpin shot a glare in Uldren's direction, "a part of their plan was to takeover Atlas from the inside, and they've begun that with your father's company. We are just lucky they didn't get the aura-dust weapon." Ozpin looked quite grim as he began again, "Unfortu-," "My father is dead." It wasn't a question that left Fikrul's mouth, but a statement.

"Yes."

"Clearly you have evidence of these acts of treason. Why don't you just show me to the public and we get the KWC back?" Fikrul was genuinely curious.

"According to the official record, Frederick Kingsworth was killed, and is being buried today, and no one would believe that you are a faunus." Uldren raised very valid reasons.

"However, if you are willing, you can help us win this war against Salem and your mother, and avenge Craask. So, are you in?" Fikrul stared determinedly into Ozpin's eyes.

"Yes."

Then your uncle will give you your next assignment, you are both dismissed." Ozpin turned his chair 180 and started sipping from his coffee again while the other two went into the lift. On the way down, Uldren began to speak. "Look kid, I know you're going through a lot, but this mission is going to be a bombshell for you. I want you to gather your half-siblings." Fikrul stared at his uncle, but he was done with surprises for the day, numbed to its shocking effects. "I'll have their profiles given to you, but I want you to find them, and do what you think is right until I call for you."

The elevator opened, and the duo made their way to the docks, both staring ahead. "Why did my father have more children?"

"We believe he knew that Mara would one day betray him, and wanted children to live his legacy." Uldren seemed to want to ask something, and finally steeling his nerves, asked, "How did you come back from the dead?" The bullhead that would take Fikrul to Atlas was in their sights now.

Fikrul looked down and thought of how to answer his uncle. "I… it's my semblance I think, no, I know. There is an ether before the afterlife, and I can pull the souls of my bloodline back from there and put them in their bodies… but somethings… wrong with me." Uldren gave his nephew a concerned look, and he continued, "When I used it on myself, it felt like darkness entered my soul and body, and… its still there." This time, realization and sadness overtook the awoken's features.

"That is because of me," Fikrul looked to his uncle, "My sister and I are both beings of light and dark, though I have excess darkness in me. When I was mourning you, I think it spilled into you."

They arrived at the bullhead, and Fikrul stopped to think. Then, he came to a conclusion, though was hesitant to voice it, "Then… you are the father of my new life; last night, Frederick Kingsworth died," Fikrul stepped onto the bullhead, and its doors began closing slowly, "and Fikrul Forsaken (A/N: the faunus surname of Fikrul's family, pronounced for-sah-kuhn) was born! The doors finished closing, and the bullhead lifted off, leaving a smirking 'father.'

* * *

Fikrul knew that the slums in Atlas were bad, but in his previous life, he had never been exposed to anything like this. No wonder the White Fang turned dark if this is how faunus were treated. The 'new-born' stood over a table in a warehouse that would be serving as his family and his home until his 'father' summoned him. He had a new set of clothes as well, consisting of black dress pants and dress shoes, both highlighted with gold streaks, as well as a black tunic with a loincloth that featured his family crest (A/N: scorn symbol) in gold. Additionally, he had a helmet to hide his identity, with gold plating over his shins and upper upper arms. He had his father's blades, _the Kings of Kings,_ at his hip, and the Kingsworth staff, which he named _Fanatica,_ in his upper hands On the table were seven folders, holding all the information Atlas had, provided by General Ironwood, another of Ozpin's allies, on his half-siblings.

* * *

 _Elykris_

 _Sex: female_

 _Age: 15_

 _Semblance: controls machines_

 _Species: faunus-spider-extra set of arms_

 _Family: N/A_

 _Whereabouts: commonly seen in Atlas Scrapyard_

 _Notes: a hoarder that gets any piece of tech she can get her claws on, commonly raids places of high quality machinery, but stays away from major companies. Left eye is robotic. Do not send in Atlesian Knights of any series; already has dozens. Very good at repairing 'junk' and making dangerous weapons._

* * *

 _Reksis Vahn_

 _Sex: male_

 _Age: 15_

 _Semblance: anger increases physical qualities (strength, speed etc.) as well as increase and recovery of aura_

 _Species: faunus-spider-two extra eyes_

 _Family: deceased mother and claims a lost/deceased twin sister (unconfirmed)_

 _Whereabouts: heart of the Slums_

 _Notes: do not engage if spotted. Hates 'rich-ass' Atlesian citizens, but is enraged by ANY form of machinery. AKs have been found mauled, insides torn out, and even phones, cameras etc. do not escape his fury. Claims to be 'defender of the weak.'_

* * *

 _Hiraks_

 _Sex: male_

 _Age: 14_

 _Semblance: can control minds, both human and Grimm_

 _Species: faunus-spider-extra set of arms_

 _Family: deceased villagers_

 _Whereabouts: outside eastern border of city_

 _Notes: village was attacked 10 years ago by Grimm, survivors claimed that they stopped attacking half way through and carried a child matching Hiraks' appearance of that time. Two years ago, he shows up in a village with docile Grimm and makes people his 'followers.' Claims to posses dark magic and knowledge from before the shattered moon._

* * *

 _Pirrha_

 _Sex: male_

 _Age: 12_

 _Semblance: makes up to ten fragile light clones (they may not be able to take a hit, but they do pack a punch)_

 _Species: faunus-spider-extra set of arms (can 'stick to walls')_

 _Family: deceased mother, now criminal mastermind_

 _Whereabouts: moves with mercenary group_

 _Notes: raised by a criminal boss of unknown name. Even though blind, is very proficient with long ranged rifles. developed heightened senses to make up for blindness, urban legend is he can make any shot; reports agree. Wears a Beowolf pelt, authentic. Semblance allows him to take out multiple targets at once._

* * *

 _Araskes_

 _Sex: female_

 _Age: 11_

 _Semblance: 'lies'_

 _Species: faunus-spider-extra set of arms_

 _Family: twin-Kaniks_

 _Whereabouts: commonly seen in mid-class residential area and slums_

 _Notes: not much on this twin, other than she is always with her brother and never removes cloak. Reports from stores robbed by her say that she claimed to be someone she wasn't, and they believed her. Most bizarre situation: she convinced the men protecting a convoy of SDC dust that 'they were driving their vehicle to deliver her dust to her to exchange it for a crate of authentic Grimm pelts.' They arrived at their destination with no dust, but a dumpster!_

* * *

 _Kaniks_

 _Sex: male_

 _Age: 11_

 _Semblance: claims to, quote: 'talk with the readers and writers, and bring friends into A/Ns, though they forget about it when they are not there'_

 _Species: faunus-spider-two extra eyes_

 _Family: twin-Araskes_

 _Whereabouts: commonly seen in mid-class residential area and slums_

 _Notes: the poor kid is mad, semblance drove his child's mind insane. Now is obsessed with 'friends, fun, gifts, surprises and explosions. Mechanical left leg replaces original: blown up in premature detonation, and mechanical third right under arm to 'be more like sister.' Able to make extremely powerful explosions. Loves his sister to death. Overall: insane._

* * *

 _Yaviks_

 _Sex: female_

 _Age: 10_

 _Semblance: able modify vehicles through physical contact_

 _Species: faunus-spider-two extra eyes_

 _Family: slave_

 _Whereabouts: underground races_

 _Notes: sold as a slave to criminals. Originally prepared their vehicles for illegal races, her vehicle always winning. Became their official rider and getaway driver after they saw her actively using her semblance on a motorbike. Physically weak, but put her near a vehicle and you've either lost the race, or your life._

* * *

Fikrul was going to put his family back together. Under the helmet, he smiled.

* * *

 **A/N: This story's unofficial alternate name is 'how OP can we make Fikrul before the main story?' Sorry if he's too powerful, but I have plans to limit it (morals, family, Winter etc.) Quick side note, Uldren and Mara have the ability to make themselves look human. Apart from that, I hope you guys enjoyed that 'arc' of the story, because I can't wait to bring this family together. Until then, see yah!**

 _ **P.S. If someone is willing to beta, i would greatly appreciate it.**_


	5. Machinist

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reception of this story, it just makes me want to skip to the main event, but alas, that wouldn't be fair on you guy. Therefore, I give you the 'family arc.'**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Elykris loved machines._

 _That was to be expected of someone who grew up in a scrapyard._

 _Whether it was watching the Atlesian Knights patrolling the city, or the little trinkets she would find while scavenging, Elykris was enamoured with anything mechanical, even if it was broken._

 _It made sense that her semblance allowed her to control them._

 _She always seemed to have her semblance, her first clear memory being with her 'friends' in the piles of junk that is her home. In addition to her semblance, she was also skilled with repairing machines, and making knew inventions that would make the military envious. She even sold prosthetics to those that could afford, even eyes on a few occasions. Unfortunately, that included her own. So many of her friends were built from random items she found, only partially resembling AKs._

 _Despite having so many friends, Elykris was very lonely, as her drones were just that: mindless workers that obeyed her every whim. Therefore, she strived tom make better friends, ones with personality and choice, but that required better tech._

* * *

David liked to think that he had a good life. He owned a small store that sold bits and pieces of weapons to huntsmen and huntresses, he had a wife and two kids, and he was on the way to a peaceful environment, planning to eventually pass away peacefully.

He would never think he would lose his life to an Atlesian Knight for refusing to serve a faunus.

Elykris watched as her Knight executed the storeowner who denied her service yesterday due to her heritage. It pleased her greatly to know that she was free to raid the place of anything that interested her, and the AKs outside would guarantee that no one interrupted her.

"Go join the others outside," she commanded. The rusted AK nodded, the joints creaking as it did, and it left to guard the building. Elykris could only wish that she could get her hands on one of the newer Knights, instead of the outdated junk that waited outside. Half of them weren't even made of original parts. However, those were only dreams, and her current assets got her jobs done fine as it were.

Elykris took a moment to look in a mirror. She wasn't looking that good these days; she was too skinny, with her clothes being a loose fitting tan T-shirt with holes for her extra arms, baggy tan cargo pants and simple sandals, the best fitting things she could find. Her red robotic eye twitched next to her blue one as she looked to her shoulder length brown-black hair. Rags covered wounds and blisters she got when she worked longer than her aura could handle.

Elykris removed all of the shifting mechanisms in the weapons, the ones that allowed said weapons to shift form, and put them into her backpack. She had an idea for a new weapon, and scavenged some rocket launchers for their ammo and firing mechanisms. She already had the targeting system for this new weapon, and now all she needed was a synchroniser to pair it with her eye.

She couldn't get such advanced tech from a measly store that sold weapons.

Deciding that she was done, Elykris carried her satchel over her soldier and lifted her weapon. It was a single form gun that fired fire dust projectiles in a spread out burst. It reminded her that she would need to stock up on more dust soon. Elykris exited the store, and an unwanted, but expected sight lay before her.

Her drones were in pieces, obviously gunned down by the numerous Atlesian soldiers, at least thirty, that surrounded her in a semicircle. All of the had their weapons pointed at her, and what she assumed to be the leader spoke, "Machinist, you are under arrest! Put down your weapons and stolen items, and raise your hands in the air!" Ah yes, her 'stage' name. She didn't listen, only fastening the satchel to her belt and reloading her weapon. "Comply now, or we will shoot!" She raised her weapon, and the soldiers went to fire, but all that came was clicking noises.

Atlesians, their advancement was their uprise against the Grimm, but their downfall to her.

Suddenly, all of their rifles simultaneously combusted, killing most of them. Elykris then made a mad dash for the slums, believing that they wouldn't follow, for fear of the Hangman. She was correct, as her audio sensors were ordering their back up to disengage. She quickly blocked their communications, and sent them her own message in the commander's voice, leading them deep into the slums. The Hangman would have a fun time with them.

* * *

When Elykris arrived home at sundown, she was greeted by her remaining 83 AKs, awaiting her commands as always. She really needed to ration her forces, seeing that they fell so easily in simple operations like this last one. Elykris sent a mental message to remain on guard mode, and she entered the vast piles of junk that was her home. When she got to her den, the centre of the scrapyard, she went to her workbench and emptied her plunder onto it.

She then began assembly on her new project; a single-man multi rocket launcher, able to lock onto a single or multiple targets, and fire a volley of rockets at them. She was inspired to make this device by one of her few ideals, the late Dr Wardcliff, except whereas his design was handheld, hers would be carried on the back, allowing for larger rockets.

* * *

After hours of work, only stopping at dawn the next day, she had finally finished her launcher. Mostly. It was still missing the synchroniser that would link the targeting system to her eye, allowing her to fire at what she looked at. The only place that sold such advanced tech, and the components needed to make it, was the KWC, but after the assassination of Craig and Frederick Kingsworth, they've had tighter lockdown on their facilities than the Atlas military on theirs. She would know, she tested it.

However, Elykris was determined to finish this weapon, and her reasoning wasn't very grand these days. Coming to a haphazard conclusion, she picked up S _crapper_ and put the unfinished _Deus Ex Machina_ on her back, and rallied her AKs.

She was going to finish this weapon, and then she could take whatever she wanted.

* * *

The facility blueprints showed that there was one way in, one way out. In order to enter, multiple cameras would scan her and her AKs and check her to the system database. She already inserted a fake profile as the mechanic. After that, it was a series of hallways leading to different experimental weapons. She would block out the security and send her drones around the facility to create chaos, a distraction for her to get to the room that contained the synchroniser. After _Deus Ex Machina_ was complete, she could raid the facility of anything she wanted, as no one could stop her.

She approached the facility, only guarded by a dozen of the latest model of Atlesian Knights, the AK-130s. She didn't control the though, because _she_ knew that _they_ knew that _she_ was interested in their weapons, so they would have measures to alert them of her control over them. She instead made herself invisible to their sensors, allowing her to slip past.

She got to the gate, and allowed it to scan her, and seconds after, the door beeped to signal her allowed entry. However, the access was delayed for microseconds too long, and Elykris knew that she had been caught. Sooooo… she threw open the door and fired at the half dozen men pointing weapons at her. As they were stunned, she rushed past them, her drones filing in by the tens and spreading through the facility, making short work of the guards. As the chaos started, Elykris sprinted through the halls, blueprints memorized, incapacitating or killing anyone in her way.

After several minutes of this, the sounds of battle no longer reaching her ears, the teen arrived at room she was looking for. She overrode the door controls and threw open the last barrier between her and her goal. She placed _Deus Ex Machina_ on the nearest workbench and went to the single crate in the room. Elykris shot at it and the aftereffects of the fire dust the burnt the wood away, revealing the synchroniser. The teen picked it up and rushed to the workbench, implementing the final piece of _Deus Ex Machina._

As the deed was finished, Elykris heard footsteps and voices outside, and cameras told her that her AKs were finished, and all the remaining soldiers were outside that door, unfortunately with none of their own Knights. She put on her new weapon as someone spoke from outside.

* * *

The commander was finally going to redeem himself. He had failed to stop the criminal Elykris at her last heist, and she further added salt to the wound by intercepting military transmissions, sending his men into the arms of the Hangman himself. When they managed to recover the bodies, forensics couldn't tell what belonged to who.

But now, the General had him posted here, and the gods brought her right to him. Her extra protection was gone, and the soldiers were all using more 'traditional' weapons, regular dust pistols and rifles, and they had her cornered. He spoke up, "Machinist, come out wi-," the door exploded off of its hinges, and their stood the teen scavenger herself, wearing a bulky metal thing with holes on her back, and her weapon in hand. As the stunned men got up and prepared to fire, several rockets left the 'backpack' and went to each of the standing soldiers, who were quickly killed by the firepower.

Blood and fire and bodies covered the halls as the commander woke, being hit by the door before. He saw the girl who had humiliated him _walking_ towards the exit, carefree after she just murdered all of his men. The last soldier alive reached for his rifle, and as the scavenger bandit looked into one of the experimental rooms, he took aim and fired into one of the holes on the missile launcher.

He closed his eyes as the explosion engulfed him, and the last screams of the Machinist reached his ears.

* * *

Fikrul treaded through the burnt facility that he used to 'own', admiring the damage his eldest sister was able to cause alone. He eventually reached the area with the most carnage, fires still dying down, charred corpses littering the ground and dry blood on the walls. However, one of these corpses was the centre of his attention. "Sturdy weapons, sis," Fikrul commented as a burnt corpse with a robotic left eye and hunk of metal on its back, in proximity to a scrap-metal gun. Fikrul could feel his semblance reaching out for Elykris, and he allowed it to.

Fikrul exhaled, and a dark blue gas came from under his helmet. The gas inched towards the corpse, and entered through any hole available. The ex-heir saw features of the girl become clear, the burns went away, wounds were sealed, and hair grew back. Elykris was beautiful, and Fikrul wished he could've grew up with her. The body was fully healed, and the boy reached for her soul.

Elykris woke up with a start.

She was breathing heavily, the last thing she could remember was fire and pain. Now, here she was, feeling better than ever, though a little…sick? She couldn't tell. "Hello Machinist, or do you prefer Elykris?" The scavenger quickly turned to see another spider faunus, holding a staff in his upper arms and blades on a belt. He wore a strange helmet.

"Who are you?" she asked.

He merely chuckled, "It is a long story, but… I am Fikrul Forsaken. You're half-brother." Elykris choked. She… had a family. She would have called bullshit, if not for his faunus trait being the same as hers. "Grab what is yours, and let's go; I will explain more when we get home. He started walking off, and after a few seconds, Elykris got up, grabbed _Scrapper_ and followed.

They walked in silence until they got outside the building, where many, _many_ soldiers were waiting. They all raised their guns, and the scavenger raised hers, but before any shots were fired, Fikrul slammed his staff into the ground, and in a flash of lightning, they were gone.

* * *

One second she was about to fight off many angry Atlesians, the next she was in a warehouse of sorts. She looked around puzzled until her eyes fell on Fikrul's mask. "Okay, explain… brother?" She was still unsure on their relation.

He chuckled, "Of course, you are owed answers. It is a long story, so I will attempt to keep it brief. Our mutual father, Craask Forsaken, had many… affairs, to preserve his legacy." Fikrul sat on one of four couches surrounding a large coffee table and Elykris sat opposite him. "I was the child of his wife, and was raised by him. He died recently, and now I work for the father of my second life, who assigned me the mission of reuniting my siblings, and then awaiting his call."

Elykris was curious about some things now. "So, how many siblings do yo-, _we_ have? And what do you mean by 'new life?'"

Fikrul nodded in understanding, obviously finding her questions reasonable. "Apart from me and you, there are six other children of Craask. And for my new life… my semblance allows me to revive those of my blood from the dead, which I did to you, you are welcome. I myself have died once, and when I used it on myself, my new father's soul mingled with mine, creating what I like to think of as my new life. You also share a bit of his soul now, so he is your father too."

This was a lot to take in. "I- think I need to rest for today. This is a lot of info on a girl for one day." Where are we, by the way?"

"We are in out temporary home, until father calls for us. Come, before I show you your room, let me show everything to you." Fikrul got up and Elykris followed. The warehouse was two storied, and Fikrul showed her the kitchen, dining table that they were just at, lounging area/TV room, and the rest of the large first floor was for whatever they wanted, or as Fikrul called it, the 'neutrality zone.' He then took Elykris upstairs, which was a single hallway with ten doors, five on each side. These was the beds and bathrooms, the first door on the left being 'for the girls' and the first door on the right being 'for the boys.' "You can choose whatever room you want, mine is the furthest on the right." Elykris went to the second door on the left, but Fikrul said one more thing. "One last thing, one of our siblings… is your twin, and I want you to bring him to us."

Elykris turned to her brother, a sparkle in her eye, "what is his name?" she asked, but Fikrul's reply replaced that sparkle with dread.

"Reksis Vahn, the Hangman."

* * *

 **A/N: and so it begins. I have an idea to make short stories after I start the main series about what the barons do during the five-year gap. It'll be a collection of one shots, and at the end of this story, I'll ask for suggestions from you guys. Sorry if these next few chapters end up being shorter than the first arc, but it's mostly going to be the same thing six times. Also, while all of the future barons, with the exception of Fikrul and Hiraks, are infamous thieves/criminals, Reksis Vahn is this big bad anti-hero that everyone in the slums know and fear, and next chapter we'll see how he handles finding his long lost twin, but until then, see you guys!**


	6. Hangman

**A/N: I will start this off with an apology in advance. Because of one of my two ships in this story, there will be incest. Also, this chapter will be bloody. Other than that, go check out the first 'Scorned of Beacon: One-shots.'**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Reksis Vahn was not always the monster he is today._

 _Once, he was a weak little boy, malnourished to the point that his arms were as thin as a baby's was. His mother, whom he kept the maiden name of, was always looking after him, despite her sicknesses. Only one thing made the world still worth living in._

 _Elykris._

 _His sweet, twin sister was his light in this dark world. She even made a lantern for him, which he has kept lit with the fires of his soul to this day. One day though, his light was taken away from him at the age of six._

 _He went to the drug store to get the medication his mother needed, but as typical humans would, the clerk denied him service, even beating him a bit before he was thrown out. When he returned home empty-handed, his mother had a fever, and Elykris was gone. His mother told him that one of Atlas' elite came through the area with the Knights that were supposed to defend Atlesians indifferently, and took any faunus he could find to be taken away. She died in his arms then._

 _Armed with a newfound hatred of anybody that thought their status allowed them to control the weak, he marched right up to that man's mansion. It was a haze for Reksis what happened after arriving. All that he could remember was the satisfaction as he ripped apart the robotic enforcers of the rich, their armour burst apart, circuits splaying out, and the guts of men splayed along the walls like bloody paint, murdered in the most brutal ways imaginable, all done with strength a boy like him shouldn't have. Their weapons couldn't stop him, barely slowed him, and their pleas fell on deaf ears. His lantern's flame glowed bright than ever when he burst into his target's office. This man, who was only one of many that orchestrated the world with politics, manipulating the game in their favour and leaving everyone else like Reksis in the ground._

 _As he broke the man's bones with only his hands, Reksis contemplated; his mother always told him he was smart. This strength, probably his semblance, was birthed from his hatred, his agony, his pain. If he didn't vent out his feelings like he was now, stepping on the man's arms, he could lose control. He needed something to focus his hatred for these people on. If he were to kill a rich person every time he got angry, well, his mother and sister would be disappointed. A perfect idea came to his mind; the AKs that were built to be enforcers of the rich's power. With that conclusion in mind, he applied pressure to the man's skull, cracking it underfoot._

 _If anyone_ did _come across his path though… well, he would give them a death as agonizing as his childhood times ten._

 _He thinks now, maybe him hanging that man's corpse by a chain_

* * *

Elykris could still not believe this after two days.

According to Fikrul, the Hangman, the murder-happy, machine hating, 'defender of the weak,' was her twin brother! Now, having/remembering her family was Elykris' dream since forever, but she had mixed feelings on this. On one side, he might be able to tell her about their family, and she could make a real _re_ connection with him. On the other, his hobbies were mutilating Atlas' elite and destroying machines beyond ever her repair.

Honestly, not much was known about him; he would be an urban legend if not for the aftermath of his encounters and all of his sightings. The agreed upon story was that he attacked any military or Atlesian elites that entered the slums, and would help anyone that was suffering. One tale that was very common was that he raided a grocery store to feed a bunch of orphans. His most common features though, the ones that told he was there, were his four glowing blue eyes, fiery aura, and the light from his chained lantern.

She always felt like she knew why he carried the lantern; maybe he had it when they were kids.

Elykris made up her mind. She was going to bring Reksis Vahn back. She got off the lounge and mentally switched off the TV. She went up to her room and equipped _Deus Ex Machina_ and _Scrapper,_ and headed back downstairs. Waiting for her though, was her brother.

"Finally ready to accept your mission, dear sister." Even though she couldn't see his face, she could tell it was smug. She nodded, humming an affirmative, but he stood in her way.

"What do you want?" she asked in an annoyed tone.

"You are aware that we both have died, correct?" She was confused as to why he needed to voice this now, but nodded anyway. "My semblance, which brought us both back, must take effect within 24 hours of the soul entering the ether, the place before the afterlife. If it is done any later, the soul cannot be recovered."

"Why are you telling me this?" Elykris didn't know how this was relevant to her going to get Reks- and it made sense now.

"I foresee death for our family, so we must bring them back. I will be departing on my own adventure, but it'll take a couple days. If Reksis dies before you get to him, I won't be able to bring him back." Fikrul pulled a flask of his belt, heavy dark blue smoke coming out of the cap. "Take this, and open it in his proximity, alive or dead, and its effects will take place." She took the flask from him and secured it to her belt. He then stood aside, and she went to find the Hangman.

* * *

You may be wondering how Reksis Vahn, the infamous Hangman, got into a fight with three unusually strong fighters. Well, it started only a few minutes ago.

* * *

 _Reksis Vahn was angrier than usual._

 _Reports of the bandit known as the Machinist being killed by the Atlesian military was the source of this rage. While he did not know her personally, he knew that she was just another person living in the slums, doing what she could to survive, and that, by his twisted logic, made her his responsibility._

 _He began walking away from the recently killed soldiers, large work boots clicking on the ground, splashing water onto his barely fitting torn jeans. The lantern that he always carried,_ Cruel Death, _illuminated his torso in the dark, bare and covered in chains connecting to said weapon. His short, black-brown hair could barely be seen though, and his four blue eyes glowed in the dark. It was then that a female voice spoke up._

" _You must be the infamous Hangman, am I right?" Reksis turned around and held his lantern out, illuminating three figures. The one that spoke was a girl, perhaps a little older than he was, with amber eyes and rave hair. She wore a red dress, held up by an x-collar around her neck, with separated, but matching sleeves. On her back, she had two rather large knives, and several arrows._

 _To her left was a man, crouching on the ground, a maniacal smile covering his lips, illuminating his golden eyes. He wore a white sleeveless jacket, with leather straps attached to it. He had matching white pants and knee-high leather boots, with knee guards and leather vambraces on his arms. His brown ponytail was braided to look like the scorpion tail on his back._

 _To her right was a large, muscular man, though he was still smaller than Reksis. He wore an olive green coat over a black shirt, fastened with a belt. He wore matching black pants and brown boots, tipped with white. Reksis could see scars around his elbows, arms crossed over his chest. His bearded face was calm, hazel eyes staring at the Hangman._

 _Reksis believed these three to be huntsmen, a grey area for his morality. He would have to see what they wanted._

" _Who's asking?"_

 _The leader, the female he presumed, spoke again, "we work for people that are very interested in your abilities, and wish for you to join forces with them." She smiled in a way that said that whatever happened, she would get what she wanted._

 _She would soon find she was wrong._

" _What's in it for me?" She kept smiling in that way, and it annoyed Reksis,_ Cruel Death _beginning to glow brighter._

" _Our plans involve getting rid of the elite that you despise. All you need to do is-,"_

" _CUT THE BULLSHIT!" The woman and faunus' smiles dropped, and the man uncrossed his arms. "I can tell what kind of people you are; you're just like the people that took_ her. _Manipulating people for your own goals. I can tell that you would get rid of the rich, as well as the rest of Atlas!" He readied his weapon, and they prepared theirs._

* * *

Now, here they are, battling it out three-on-one.

They were severely out-matched.

While they were able to outnumber Reksis and take out his aura after several minutes, no amount of punches, slashes, arrows or stings were enough to even dent his rage-powered body, and ever hit he got in left them reeling, apart from the man.

All four of them were aura shattered, and Reksis could generate more at any time, if he wasn't trying to resist the effects of the faunus' poison. If they continued fighting, all four of them would die, and the leader recognised this, "We're *pant* done here. He has enough *pant* poison in him to take out a *pant* goliath." Her allies silently agreed, and in a burst of flames, they disappeared.

Reksis fell to one knee. The girl was right, the poison keeping the Hangman from focusing on his wounds. Nevertheless, he began to limp into the slums, when another girl, about his age again, with a robotic left eye, four arms and large device on her back, stood in his path. He would have attacked outright if she didn't remind him of _her._ "Who are you?"

She stared for a moment, before gulping and giving a response. "I'm- my name is Elykris."

The sudden shock from her saying that distracted him, letting the poison overwhelm him, and he fell into unconsciousness for the last time.

* * *

Elykris couldn't believe her eye! She had witnessed her twin, the Hangman, take on three huntsman and drive them to defeat, though he was severely wounded. When she approached him, she had difficulty deciding on what to say. 'What would his reaction be? Would he remember? Would he be happy? When she said her name however, the last thing she expected was for him to die on the spot.

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit." The Machinist panicked, but remembered about her encounter with Fikrul before she left. She got out the flask and opened it, and the blue smoke spilled out onto the floor. It seemed to crawl towards the corpse of Reksis Vahn, entering his many wounds. Once it was inside, it began healing wounds. She crouched over the body, and finally, four glowing blue eyes opened and met hers. She went to speak, but was silenced as his massive arms engulfed her in what she hoped was a hug. The notorious Hangman whispered joyfully as tears developed in his eyes.

"Elykris, I missed you so much."

* * *

After Elykris had explained the long-ass story of their family, she managed to convince her twin to come with her back home. When they arrived, they were still talking about things, the boy trying to catch up with his sister, and the girl desiring to know about her past.

"So I made that lantern for you?"

"Yes, and I have kept it lit with my aura ever since you disappeared."

"And Vahn is our mother's maiden name?"

"Yes, I carry it to help remind me of her," he stated proudly.

"Huh," Reksis stiffened and stopped walking, but Elykris didn't notice as she approached the pile of junk she and Fikrul got from the scrapyard. She turned around and saw him tense, fists clenched and shaking with anger. "What's wrong with you?"

He seemed to barely ground out his answer, "why do you keep so many machines around?"

Elykris got annoyed by this; she didn't like people judging her hobbies, and her twin was sounding very judgemental. "Because it has to do with my semblance, and I like mechanic work, is there a problem?" was her snarky reply.

Reksis began approaching her, replying "these machines that the elite use to trample over the poor, doing whatever they so please.

She looked more upwards as he got closer, attempting to maintain eye contact. Which eyes does she look at? "These machines were my only friends when I was alone! I didn't have anything else, was is this a problem for you!?"

"BECAUSE THEY TOOK YOU AWAY FROM ME!" They were so close now, and despite the anger in his voice, his eyes held tears. Surprise entered her eye, and then silent apology. But as the twins stood right in front of each other, faces inches apart, they felt something that siblings shouldn't feel towards each other.

Love.

Despite only interacting for a few hours, something just seemed to click in them. They both reasoned with these feelings differently.

Elykris told herself that she didn't even remember her childhood with the Hangman, so it shouldn't be _that_ bad to feel like this to him.

Reksis told himself that despite her being his long lost twin sister, she seemed like an entirely new person now, maybe he should treat her as such.

Then, the same thought popped up in their hormone filled minds: Fikrul said that with his semblance was a new life; perhaps theirs didn't have to be as brother and sister.

And with that in mind, neither regretted it when their lips locked in a passion-filled kiss.

* * *

 **A/N: *me, hiding I a pillow fort* I'm sorry! But I am defending this ship! I hope I explained Reksis Vahn enough though. On a side note, go check out 'Scorned of Beacon: One-shots' and review any suggestions for one-shot ideas. Also, sorry about the lack of detail in the fight scene, I might update it when I feel like it (I'm actually secretly lazy). Additionally, if anyone wants to beta for me it would be greatly appreciated. Also, I won't be able to update as regularly as I have for the last few days, but that doesn't mean I've given up! I am gonna see this story as far as I can. It just means that I'm doing other stuff. So until then, see you guys.**


	7. Mindbender

**A/N: Apologies for the delay, I began thinking of different ways to convey this chapter, as well as another plot point I wanted to fit in and how to do that. However, here it is, and I hope it meets your expectations for what a hive worshipping scorn should be.**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Fire._

 _That is all that Hiraks could see. The little four year old's village, just on the edge of Atlas' eastern border, was attacked by overwhelming numbers of Grimm. His mother had been killed, right in front of his eyes, and in the child's anguish, his mind opened up, reaching out to any that heard his cries._

 _The Grimm replied._

 _Before him were the Beowolves, Ursai, King Taijitu and Deathstalkers, who just moments before were mindlessly attacking things, and they just sat there, curious of how this child called to them. Hiraks was confused as well, and once again his mind reached out and touched the primitive minds of the Grimm, and they weren't able to resist. Knowledge filled the child's head, and with that came understanding, as well as a name._

 _Yul, the first Grimm._

 _He wanted to see this Yul that filled all of the minds of the Grimm, and so they took him, placing on an Ursa Major, and they set off, abandoning the village, the creatures obeying the whims of their master helplessly. They travelled for weeks, every time Hiraks wanted food, it was brought to him, every time he was thirsty, they stopped at a rive or lake. This continued until they reached a large hole in the ground, and a worm-like Grimm rose from its depths, inspecting the child._

 _Hiraks once again wished to know about this creature, and his mind reached out, but this Grimm was older, sentient enough to resist complete control. It instead gave the child what it wanted._

 _Knowledge._

 _Millenniums worth of memories entered Hiraks' mind, and in that moment, he matured mentally into an adult, and he knew things that no other human on Remnant knew. He knew of a time before the moon was shattered, when two gods lived among humanity. Magic was plentiful in that time. Hiraks called to Yul again, no longer the mind of a child that didn't understand, but the mind of a man who was thirsty for knowledge, and asked, pleaded for this ancient building to teach him these magics that humanity had forgotten._

 _And Yul's will broke, giving into the boy._

 _For eight years, Hiraks learnt under Yul, not just about the history of the world, of which Yul had been in since its creation, but of how to use magic, dark magic that utilised both the orthodox techniques used by humans and Yul's own magical abilities. After those eight years, when Hiraks had learnt all that Yul could teach, and they boy returned to society with his followers. The people didn't understand him, and so they feared him. He gave them the gift of knowledge by opening his mind to them, and they became followers too. For two years, he ruled his followers, adding new ones every day._

 _Until now_

* * *

It was just another day for Hiraks.

He sat upon his throne inside what was once the town hall of this village. He wore a golden chest plate and greaves, gauntlets matching, but with Grimm bone on the upper arms, with a black clothing underneath. Atop his head was his crown, two Grimm horns attached to a helmet. He had pitch black hair and glowing green eyes, both unnatural side effects of his use of dark magic.

Hiraks was quite satisfied with his work in the last few weeks; he had gathered dozens more followers, all very willing to be the subjects to his experiments. What experiments could the dark acolyte perform? He was attempting to follow in the footsteps of Yul's first servant, a warrior prince named Auryx. He was able to use the first Grimm's magic to convert non-Grimm entities into the creatures, and had full control over them. Yul referred to it as taking ones humanity, or 'taking'. After that, he became Oryx, the Taken King, until he was struck down by a warrior named Ozma. Hiraks lusted for such unimaginable power, and so when he wasn't amassing his following and worshipping Yul, paying tribute with his emotions, he was attempting to take his followers.

He decided that today, after tireless attempts that only led to the death of a good amount of followers and getting no closer to the dark secrets of Oryx, he would simply amass more of a following. He picked up his blade, _Ascendance,_ which was able to transform into a cannon that released magical energy as projectiles, and exited the building. He was met with his following bowing upon seeing him, and he permitted them to continue their duties. He then headed west, into the city of Atlas.

* * *

Jerome had just finished his task, given to him by the Spider. He was tasked to scout out the area now known as 'the Hollowed Lair,' and confirm the suspicions about both the Machinist and the Hangman working together. After confirming this over a secure line with his boss, Jerome began his walk back to his home; he would get his pay from Spider tomorrow.

On the long walk home, the agent realised something; he was being followed by a hooded individual, face and arms concealed. Looking around and determining that they were alone, he turned to the stranger, hand on the pistol on his hip. His pursuer stopped, and Jerome spoke up. "You're messing with the wrong guy buddy, what do you want?"

The other man chuckled, "well Jerome, I heard that you were a talented individual, and I wish to recruit you for something." Usually, Jerome would have shot the man for knowing anything about him, but something about his voice made him want to hear more.

"What would I get in return?"

Jerome saw two glowing green orbs beneath that hood before all of his will left him.

* * *

This was too easy nowadays.

Hiraks' semblance allowed him to completely take control of anyone that willingly listened to him. Simply continuing conversation as this gangster did was enough for him to add weak-minded people to his following. The Mindbender then left the area, a dozen people joining Jerome as they followed their master.

* * *

Hiraks was making the trek back to his village, followers behind him, when through the snow that began to fall he was able to see fire. He commanded his followers to go ahead and investigate while he called for any neighbouring Grimm to come to him.

There weren't any, and slowly, he felt his newest followers leave this life.

He sprinted towards the fire discarding his cloak and drawing _Ascendance_ while his crown and armour formed in a blaze of green fire. When he finally arrived, he saw two individuals fighting, a woman and a man, the latter not much older than himself.

The woman wore a black and red shallow cut dress, black detached stockings and black boots with red heels and soles. She had a red girdle-belt and matching gauntlets with black fingerless gloves beneath. She wore five beaded necklaces and an assortment of feathers on her hip, with a mask similar to a Grimm adorning her face, fully covering it. She wielded a massive sheath with many dust blades within, and a hilt to draw them. She had raven black hair that reached her shoulders, and beneath the mask he saw red. He detected magic within her, perhaps equal to his own, but of the light. He tapped the surface of her mind, and learned her name was Raven, the Spring Maiden.

The man was a peculiarity to Hiraks though. He wore black dress pants and shoes, highlighted with gold. He had a black tunic with a golden symbol on it, and had gold plating on his arms and shins. A large helmet concealed his entire head, similar in appearance to the symbol. He had a belt that sheathed two cutlasses and two daggers around his waist. He had four arms, same as Hiraks, and he held a metal staff with an abnormally large dust crystal at its top, which emitted electricity at a significantly high power level. Hiraks tried to probe him, but was denied entry. What scared him, however, was the light AND dark magic within him, as well as the darkness that seemed to taint his soul.

Both figures ceased their fight to stare at him.

* * *

Raven and Fikrul had been fighting for several minutes, both with the intention of recruiting the Mindbender.

For the ex-heir, he wanted to bring his long lost brother back into his family, hopefully without having to use his semblance in the end. Life was a freedom after all.

For the maiden, she heard tales of the extremely powerful boy who could control Grimm, with some throwing dark magic into the story. If she could recruit someone like him, she wouldn't have to worry about Ozpin, Uldren, Salem OR Mara ever again.

They had both arrived at the same time, and Raven had initiated the battle. At first, while they both used their respective blades, the followers and Grimm dying from the cross-fire, Raven quickly realised that she needed her powers to defeat her foe. However, what should have been a one-sided match from there on out became an even greater challenge as Fikrul swapped _Kings of Kings_ for _Fanatica,_ the blasts, while very taxing on his aura, were very effective against the maiden. He was shot bursts of electricity at her, brought lighting around him when she got to close, teleported in bolts and tethered her with beams.

After several minutes, they both felt a dark presence and turned to the newly arrived boy.

* * *

Hiraks attempted to probe both again, and once again could only see Raven's thoughts. Memories filled him, and he learned many things in an instant: her intentions for being here, who she was, the war between Ozpin and Salem and her powers. "Who are you, and why are you here?" Raven went to reply, but he cut her off, "Not you Raven, I already know everything about you, _maiden."_ She stiffened, and readied her weapon once again, "You wish to recruit me to your tribe and protect you from the people running this world. Unfortunately, such things are beneath me, and I have a greater purpose in this life." Hiraks brandished _Ascendance_ and got in a combat stance. "And if you keep trying, well… I wonder if your little sunny dragon will be able to withstand my experiments."

Her arms were shaking, and she drew her blade, cutting open a portal which she quickly retreated into. When it disappeared, Hiraks turned to Fikrul, "who are _you_?"

He stood proudly as his staff turned into a ball of lightning that he pocketed, and said "my name is Fikrul Forsaken, and I believe that it would be better to show you than tell you." A raven cawed as it flew above and Hiraks approached this strange man, once again attempting to probe his mind. Most of it was blocked, but he could see a blue skinned man, father, two other spider faunus, Elykris and Reksis Vahn, and finally, "brother?" was what left Hiraks' mouth as his eyes opened. He could hear the smirk as Fikrul nodded.

"Let's go home brother."

It was then that the blade entered through his heart from behind.

* * *

Raven was pissed.

How dare he not only refuse her invitation, but he looked inside her mind and threatened Yang. While she did leave her child almost a decade ago, it did not mean she didn't care for her; she only wished she would prove herself strong and come to her. After she 'retreated' into the forest near the fiery village, she turned into her raven form and returned to the scene, watching as the two faunus stood in front of each other before Hiraks whispered 'brother'.

If these two were brothers, they might hunt her down. She had to do something now, she didn't need to watch her back for another threat. She flew down, and when she was behind the Mindbender she transformed and stabbed him through the heart. There was silence for several minutes before she removed her blade and the acolyte fell to the ground. Fikrul kneeled next to him, and Raven prepared to leave.

* * *

Hiraks was on the ground, brother above him and trying desperately to breathe. He looked as the bandit began walking away from the scene, but felt immense dark and light emitting from the man next to him. He looked as Fikrul, with shaking arms, stood up and held all four arms in front of him. A tear in space-time opened, and Hiraks couldn't believe his eyes.

He had summoned a harbinger.

Harbingers were creatures of immense power, light and dark, that more sentient magic users used to fight each other, groups able to take out cities, even entire kingdoms. The Mindbender watched as Fikrul released the weapon, its gravity pulling the remains of the village around them into it and towards Raven. Said woman turned towards the commotion, and though she wore a mask, Hiraks could tell her eyes widened as the weapon connected, sending her flying thousands of kilometres away in an instant.

The Mindbender passed with a smirk on his face.

* * *

Fikrul didn't know what he had just summoned, only that his magic allowed him to do so. He turned to the body of his brother, seeing the satisfied smile on his face, and pained him to know what he was going to do next. He raised his arms as the corrupted ether left them, also escaping from beneath his mask, and crawled towards the magic user's corpse. The wound healed, and soon, two greenish-blue orbs opened. Fikrul quickly opened a portion of his mind to his brother, explaining his semblance to him. The younger one only nodded, and Fikrul silently helped him up, and they began their trek home.

* * *

The journey was filled with silent mental conversation, the two sharing their life missions and their powers, though the ex-heir did not reveal anything of his first life. When they arrived back at their home, however, they could tell something bad had happened.

Corpses littered the area around the building, which showed evidence of being attacked and on fire, from the holes and scorch marks. The two ran inside to find more bodies and the twins, Elykris looking over Reksis, who was unconscious on the couch. Fikrul spoke up, startling his second, "what happened?"

She looked first at her new brother, then to the eldest, and replied with two words.

"The Spider."

* * *

 **A/N: Technically, that is the end of an arc that I'm renaming the free family arc, and the next one will be called the Spider arc. Additionally, I wanted to re-explain Fikrul's semblance, as I believe I have a better explanation. Before his corruption, Fikrul would have taken some of the ether from the ether, which is where a soul stays for 24 hours to reflect on their life before the move on to the afterlife (at least in this story), and that force would heal the body, and eventually, the ether that contained the soul would join the body. Now, it is the same, except when the ether travels through Fikrul into the physical plane, it is corrupted with darkness, also tainting the soul. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't forget to take the survey for the Elykris/Reksis ship, if anyone wants to beta it woul be greatly appreciated, but until then, see you guys.**


	8. Rifleman

**A/N: I just want to get this off my chest. I have been really stupid. The reason why I haven't updated properly in forever is because I imagined too big. I came up with a cool story that involved the fallen houses being a society trying to take down Mara and Salem, and I kept thinking of different ways to kick start that. However, I realised that it focused too much on the side characters rather than the main ones, so after some thinking, I completely scrapped that idea (mostly). I am now going with my original idea, with any other characters outside a small few being easter eggs. If you do like the other idea, I might incorporate it into another story, but this one was suffocating from it. Anyway, here is the chapter, and I hope to get back on track soon.**

 **Also, I've been procrastinating. So many games to play.**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 _Pirrha grew up knowing three things._

 _One, the place where most desperate among the poor go to for work, in the deepest part of the Atlesian slums, is the Tangled Shore. The Shore was where lost things would wash up, and find new purpose, but if you lose yourself there, there is no chance of return._

 _Two, the master of the Tangled Shore is the Spider. The Spider is a two-faced 'business man' who traps the lost ones with his semblance, which made a contract, which would kill whoever broke it. Others have attempted to take his throne, but none have succeeded._

 _And three, the Spider owned Pirrha. Spider told the boy that he had saved him when he lost his eyes, so far in the past that he had no recollection. The Spider said that he owed his life to him, for he saved his, and the contract enforced it._

 _And so, over the course of nearly a decade, the Spider turned Pirrha into a living weapon, an enforcer of his master's will in the Shore. To the few people that lived to tell the tale, he was the Blind Phantom, the boy that never misses._

* * *

"Who is the Spider?" Elykris and Hiraks were sitting on the remains of one of the lounges, the unconscious form of Reksis on another as Fikrul stood over him, Dark Ether emerging from his palms. The eldest sibling had been tending to the Hangman since his return, but it appeared as if he was straining to sustain the flow of the substance.

The question, of which came from Fikrul, was answered by Elykris. "He is the man that essentially rules Atlas' underworld. His influence is equivalent to the SDC and KWC, so the stories go. Fikrul seemed to pause before continuing his healing, while Hiraks stared at Elykris. Elykris noticed this and questioned him. "What are you looking at?"

The Mindbender ceased his activity and sighed, closing his eyes. "I am trying to see the events that had occurred to you and our brother without dominating your mind."

Elykris looked puzzled, and turned to Fikrul, who had known the newest member of the family the longest. "He's the legendary Mindbender," was his answer to the unasked question, not even looking away from his work.

The Machinist's gaze turned back to her younger brother, mouth gaping. While less known than the Hangman and the Blind Phantom, everyone who knew about the one who could control Grimm acknowledged that he was a powerful warrior. Elykris thought that such a legend would be older, but the fact that they were related surprised her more.

Fikrul gave one last tired sigh, breaking his younger siblings' gaze, and finally lowered his arms. He turned to his siblings, giving his analysis of Reksis' condition. "He is stable, breathing well, and all his wounds are healed except one." He gestured to the unconscious teen's throat, which had been cauterised by Elykris. "Elykris, you said that you had to cauterise his throat in order to prevent his death. While I do believe that was the right choice at the time, it is preventing me from healing his vocal cords. You saved his life, but I don't think he will be able to speak again.

Hiraks looked at his sister, concern on his face. While the met only that day, he had a few glances at the surface of her mind, and he knew that Reksis was very important to her. Said woman was staring at the table, a distant look in her eyes, dotted with the beginning of tears. Suddenly, she sprouted from her seat, anger that Hiraks knew was directed inwards covering her face. Elykris stood before Fikrul, looking directly to where his eyes would be. "I'm recruiting another of our siblings." It was less of a demand and more of a statement.

Fikrul stared (probably, can't tell with his helmet) at his eldest sister, and Hiraks sensed only empathy in him. "You will be recruiting Pirrha, the Blind Phantom." Hiraks knew that this was a well-known person in some circles based off snippets that he bothered to see in his followers. Elykris wasn't even phased by this. "This is a special case, though. Father has informed me that he works for the man that ordered the attack on you and Reksis. Taking him away will surely damage his control, and satisfy you. However, through circumstances I don't currently understand, he will not… cannot join you willingly until he is resurrected. You must first kill him."

"Understood," was Elykris' only reply. She went to the side of the couch where _Scrapper_ and _Deus Ex Machina_ rested, and began to head off. Fikrul stopped her once more, throwing a canister which she caught.

"I am going to be away, discussing with father on how to deal with our new enemy. You will have to resurrect Pirrha like you did your twin." The Machinist nodded, clipping the canister to her belt before finally leaving. Fikrul then turned to the Mindbender, addressing him with his tasks. "Brother, watch over Reksis while we are gone. The journey to father takes many days altogether, and the Blind Phantom can only be found if he wants to be, so it may be awhile. When he awakens, inform of what is happening, and then assign him this." Fikrul put a file on the table, with the name Yaviks on it. He placed two more in front of the acolyte, Araskes and Kaniks written on them. "You will look for these two," and in a flash of lightning, Hiraks was alone with the Hangman.

* * *

For days, Elykris had been searching for her brother. She had communed with the people of the slums and hacked into networks she had not known prior, but like Fikrul said, this guy just couldn't be found.

It annoyed her how Fikrul never seemed to be wrong.

She managed to finally find him not by looking at where he was, but where he will be. One civilian stated that the higher ups of the underworld, the Spider she presumed, disliked the major Atlesian families, such as the Schnees, and when she found out that said family was holding a funeral for the late Kingsworth's, though no bodies had been found, behind the manor of the late elitists. She took a wild guess where the assassin would strike.

So here she was, inside the Kingsworth manor's security hub, looking through all security footage of the area, both immediate to the funeral and surrounding it. She also added her own heavily encrypted cameras in place. Never hurt to be extra careful. While she waited for her target, she watched the Schnees and Mara as they gave their final respects to the founder and heir of the KWC. Willow Schnee was comforting the widowed Mara, while Jacques Schnee accompanied his children as they placed flowers upon the graves.

That was when Elykris saw movement on the cameras. She was instantly on the move to the roof, stepping over the unconscious security of the manor. She synced her eye to the camera system and noticed a flaw. The Kingsworth security network had been hacked, and the surrounding area had been placed in loops. She expected that Pirrha would know about this, and was thus why she had her own cameras. He failed to notice the addition, and more importantly, didn't tamper with them.

Despite Elykris' upper hand in strategizing and preparation, she was still shocked. She was seeing ten Pirrha's in different areas, nine seeming to be made of a purple aura, and only one that seemed real. This was his semblance, and if she was right, any one of those clones, packed the same punch as the real deal, they just couldn't take the same. Elykris finally got to the rooftop, where the real Pirrha was lining up his shot.

While she knew what to expect from reading his file, Elykris couldn't believe that a twelve year old kid was doing assassination jobs thugs. From what she could see, the boy wore Atlesian military grade armour, sans the helmet where he had a buzz cut, with red markers, signifying… some rank Elykris couldn't bother to know. His lower arms poked out of holes in the armour, bare. Atop that was a beowolf pelt, and if the databanks Elykris accessed were correct, such an item could only be obtained if the creature was skinned alive. The Blind Phantom wielded a sniper rifle, though a quick scan revealed that it could change to a shorter ranged crossbow. His eyes… were gone. Elykris knew he was blind, but eyeless? She'd have to work on that later.

The Machinist had to think fast, and her final plan, while risky, would probably work. She hacked the AKs that were defending the families, making them shut off, while simultaneously locking onto the locations of all of the clones. With their positions locked, she crouched, and nine missiles launched out of _Deus Ex Machina,_ the noise making Pirrha turn towards her.

As the rockets hit their targets, Elykris tackled the startled marksman off the roof, landing in the middle of Atlas' most elite.

* * *

Winter had entered a depressed state since the announced death of Frederick. When word reached the Schnee manor that assassins had entered the Kingsworth manor, where Atlas' elite had gathered hours prior, and Craig Kingsworth's ship was sabotaged, Winter retreated to her room immediately, holding the tears until her sister didn't have to see her moment of weakness. Frederick had been one of the only people Winter truly cared about, including Weiss and Klein. Her father only cared for success, her mother was an alcoholic, and Whitley was well on his way to becoming Jacques 2.0.

It had taken a few weeks for the funeral to actually be arranged. Winter and Weiss had prolonged it as long as possible, as Fredericks body had not been found, yet Craig's blades were missing and assassins had been found dead. While he was nowhere near Winter's combat level, he was, would have been, still on par with the best second year huntsmen. However, hear she was, placing flowers over an empty grave, saying goodbye to her closest friend. She will admit only to herself that she had developed feelings for the heir, though it was bound to happen with the years they were together. She only wished she had the courage to tell him that night, instead of awkwardly stuttering through small talk.

She had begun to return to her father when a noise filled the venue. She, and every other person there, stared at the roof of the manor has almost a dozen rockets were fired into the air, and began to spread out. Winter hugged her siblings close, preparing a defensive glyph to protect them. The missiles however, did not go for anybody present, and instead each hit a different area surrounding the funeral. Then, two bodies hit one of the tables. People began screeming and fleeing the venue, none of their 'regard to the dearly departed' left.

Winter took her glyph down and addressed her siblings, "go find father and get to safety!" She left no room for argument and the younger Schnees scurried off while Winter went to one of the many stationary Knights, investigating why it hadn't begun defending them. It was still online, and as Winter turned to the two intruders, she had her answer.

The first was a faunus boy donning Grimm skin and Atlesian armour, and Winter did not have a clue who he was, but the other figure she could identify, and was shocked that she could. The teen woman was the Machinist, a faunus criminal, notorious for raiding facilities for experimental tech, and was clearly responsible for disabling the AKs. What shocked the future huntress was that she was alive! Reports had come in that she was killed in a raid on a KWC facility, burnt beyond recognition. Yet her she was, living and breathing, and armed with some heavy fire power.

The two looked to each other before drawing their weapons and firing. Winter, being the huntress-in-training she was, drew her sabre, and charged the criminals that dare disrespect Frederick's memory.

* * *

That hurt a lot more than she anticipated. Elykris got up from the wreckage of the table she broke and looked over to Pirrha, who had also just gotten up. They locked eyes for a second before he drew his crossbow and she drew _Scrapper_ and they fired at each other. He managed to avoid her fire rounds, but each of his dust arrows hit her, dealing significant damage to her aura. She was saved, however, by the eldest daughter of the Schnees joining the battle, attempting to strike the Phantom from behind, but he sensed it and dodged.

Elykris had another idea on how to finish this, and fired another rocket, which circled in the sky, awaiting her command. She then began firing at her opponents, both having to block or dodge the shots. All according to plan, as while the two were distracted by each other and her oppressive fire, neither were ready for the missile to come from behind, exploding next to them and sending them flying.

Elykris walked to the body of her brother, aura depleted and too hurt to get back up. She raised _Scrapper's_ barrel to his face. "This doesn't make sense right now, but when you wake up, don't attack me, we need to talk. Until then, you're free." And then she pulled the trigger.

* * *

Winter got up, aura depleted and muscles aching, looking around at the fire and destruction that desecrated Frederick's memory. Her eyes fell upon the Machinist lifting the boy's corpse onto her shoulders and beginning to walk off, no one was there to stop her. Winter called out, "You can't _cough_ just leave! You have to pay for disrespecting his memory!" The woman stopped and turned to the Schnee, eyes locking.

"Take it up with Fikrul." And the criminal was gone.

* * *

Pirrha awoke to what he usually did, nothing. However, he was surprised he was awake at all, seeing as the woman he was fighting had killed him. He heard movement to his left and turned, alerting whoever was there that he knew they were there.

"Please don't start trying to kill me. I don't know what it means, but I'm meant to tell you 'your contract is broken.'" The contract was broken? Pirrha acknowledged that he couldn't feel the urge to follow Spider's lingering command, but that would mean he would have had to die. Right?

"How can the Spider's contract be broken? I am still alive, and I'm sure he is too." Pirrha's voice carried in whatever room they were in, the smell told him it was a warehouse, and Pirrha continued to look at where he heard breathing.

"Well, you weren't before. It's a long story, but it starts with me being your half-sister." And Elykris explained the situation that they were in, about their family and mission and the attack by the Spider and Fikrul's ability to revive them.

"So because of Fikrul, I am free of the contract?"

"Yep." Elykris had seemed very distracted throughout the entire conversation, and it sounded like she was working on something.

"What are you working on?"

She finished working and came closer to Pirrha. "You're about to find out, now try not to move." She began fiddling with a device above his eyes, which she must have added while he was dead. Suddenly, in a flash that Pirrha had never experienced to memory, he could see. He blocked his 'eyes,' allowing them to adjust to this new experience. Somehow, he knew all of the colours and shapes though, which he suspected was also the work of Elykris. He looked to his sister and hugged her, thanking her under his breath, and if he could, he would've cried.

When he released her, she began explaining. "While you were dead, I went ahead and installed those new eyes of yours, as well as a cranial computer that will inform you on basic visual stuff. Also..." she paused as she grabbed his rifle, _Blind Phantom_ **(A/N: I know, not very creative)** , and handed it to him. He then realised that he was seeing two different areas at once, and upon closer inspection, realised that it was the scope. "I linked your eyes to your weapon to enhance your already impressive marksman abilities. Now I'm sure you want to thank me, and I'll tell you how when the others get back, but for now, you need a new identity for the people of Atlas to fear. Because seriously, saying the Blind Phantom is a mouthful."

She looked at him expectantly, as if he should have a new name off the top of his head. The look was beginning to annoy him, so he thought of a simple name that described him well. He looked back at her determinedly.

"I am the Rifleman."

* * *

 **A/N: Finally! I am happy that I got this out because you guys who are reading this are the guys that put up with my crap and still took time to read this story. Thank you guys so much, I hope I can start making these last few (hopefully) chapters so that we can throw in the RWBY teams! Next chapter, I will be challenging myself with writing in a way that should be enjoyable, though the character, maybe not. Until then, see you next time.**


	9. Trickster and Mad Bomber

_**Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

 **Author: Hey guys, before we get into the story, I want you to meet someone who may be a funny companion to you as you read, or an annoying voice in your head that may go way, way meta.**

 **Kaniks: HELLO FRIENDS!**

 **A: Yes, if you couldn't tell from Fikrul part 2…**

 **K: I can see through the boundaries of this imaginary world to communicate with lovely friend readers, and friend author too!**

 **A: Yeah, okay. Anyway, to explain the rules of given to Kaniks…**

 **K: Kaniks can only speak freely in A/Ns, where I can bring my friends and siblings to talk with you.**

 **A: Though they are only aware of the fourth wall when they are in A/Ns, and remember past experiences there when they re-enter.**

 **K: I can also speak little bits that the author allows me throughout the story, but nothing that may directly hint to other characters of events they shouldn't know about. My information gap is a little more generous in future Chibi shorts that the author may make.**

 **A: Kaniks is aware of present events in our universe, such as the history of Destiny and RWBY, but only that which I know. He does not know about events that will happen in this story until it has been typed and saved.**

 **K: And finally, telepathic characters cannot see into my mind, because the knowledge will drive them mad.**

 **A: I believe we covered the ground rules for Kanik's semblance, so without further ado…**

 **K: Oh, can I narrate for a bit, please?**

 **A: Alright, you can do it for a bit when we get to you.**

 **K: Yay! Listen up friends, this is the story of how my twin Araskes and I joined the family.**

* * *

Hiraks was making an offering to his master when he heard noise coming from the couches. He got up from his ritual and turned towards the sole light of the room: Reksis' lamp. Said light began to move, and it illuminated the hulking figure of the Hangman. When he was finally standing at his full height, he held his lamp out towards the Mindbender, confused as to who he was.

Not wishing to risk Reksis Vahn becoming angered at an unknown person, Hiraks invaded his mind, placing all bits of information that he needed to know in there. Reksis' eyes widened at the feeling, and he took a moment to process the information. However, Hiraks felt he was taking too long, as he was just standing there and staring at him. It was starting to creep Hiraks out, and he had seen the greatest monstrosities known as Grimm.

Suddenly recalling what Fikrul had said two days ago, Hiraks asked a question. "Can you speak?"

He shook his head, no.

The acolyte looked to his feet for a moment before he spoke again. "I'm sorry, but we can't mourn now. We must retrieve the last members of our family." Reksis Vahn finally came closer to him, _Cruel Death_ now illuminating them both, and they went towards a table where Hiraks had been studying the remaining files. He picked up Reksis' assignment and handed it over. "This is a case you may… enjoy resolving. Our youngest sister, Yaviks, is a slave racer and mechanic for an underground racing ring. Perhaps you can show her masters what that feels like." He smiled, for he saw in the Hangman's mind what his logic was, and how he enacted it, and fear that he could tithe to Yul would be greatly satisfying.

However, Reksis' smile managed to dwarf his.

And now we come to friend Kaniks narration. Notice how we changed to underline. Very clever. Anyway, we find ourselves in downtown Atlas, the most 'normal' part of the city. This place very boring, very Vale-ish. The perfect target for the dynamic duo of disaster: the Trickster and good friend Mad Bomber.

Look at this boring dust store, with boring store clerk who is not in fact the Asian person who seems to run every business in Vale, but a woman in her twenties, boring brown hair, boring brown eyes, not so boring but still boring pink dress with white polka dots. This store clerk was having normal boring day, but unknown to her, surprise from friend Kaniks was on its way.

At twelve o'clock exactly, boring old supplier came in with a stock of dust. He wore boring grey uniform, boring grey eyes, black hair, and tan skin. Store clerk seemed surprised, but this was not the surprise. "You're not supposed to be here for two days Jeff," she says.

Jeff only chuckles, knowing that the store clerk is forgetful. "Don't you remember the email I sent Laura? I'm delivering early so that I can cash in my vacation days."

"Oh, that's right." Laura remembers seeing the email yesterday, but she was busy yesterday. She does notice something off. "Wait, my name's not Laura! It's Belle!"

Jeff looks bewildered by this statement, as if it made no sense at all. "Uh, I never called you Laura."

Laura blinked, confused, but realised her mistake. "Oh, sorry, I must have been in my own world for a second."

"No worries. Anyway here's your delivery, I've got to rush, a lot more deliveries to make."

He hands the crate over, and she takes it, opening the register to pay him. "How much do I owe you again?"

"All of the lien you have."

She stood, contemplating his answer, before she finally spoke. "Of course!" she said cheerfully, though not as cheerfully as friend Kaniks. Belle then proceeds to hand all of her precious lien over into Jeff's sack, and he leaves to finish his runs. Belle then opens the crate to see that all of her dust was there, before going back to her work.

Meanwhile, Jeff was walking down the street with the lien, and turned into an alleyway, but Jeff was no longer there. Instead, there was my awesome sister Araskes. Now time for her physical description. She has pale skin, though she covers it almost entirely with her attire. She has skinny jeans tucked into her black sneakers, and her top is covered by a black, baggy jumper, with holes for her extra arms. Over her back, an automatic rifle that can shift into a sniper rifle, with a bayonet, named _Unseen_. She also has many knives concealed on her person, with many surprises also concealed as other items: mines that looked like ammo, bombs that looked like dust, and all the more fun items. Her hood is pulled up, so only her mouth is visible, but underneath, her eyes are blue, and her hair is raven. She is very sensitive about her appearance.

As she goes down the alleyway, I drop down from above, not even making her flinch. She smiles, that one smile that only one of her pranks can cause.

"Why are you talking to yourself again?"

"For contextual dialogue. Author take over, you were sick of writing like that anyway." Kaniks states as he slumps in defeat. The boy looks much like his sister, with short raven hair, though the bangs often conceal his eyes and four sapphire eyes, though his skin is more tanned than hers. He wears jeans that were roughly cut so that his lower legs were exposed, the left one a dodgy yellow prosthetic they managed to make together. He wears a single sandal on his remaining foot. He wears a black shirt with 'Achieve Men' on it, with the right side below the sleeve completely torn apart, allowing his extra grey mechanical arm, which he begged for when he got his leg, to manoeuvre around. The most alarming thing about his appearance were the bombs strapped to his chest, as if he was going to throw himself into an explosion at any minute.

He then brightened immediately, remembering what had happened at the start of the chapter. "Oo, did you give my surprise to Belle?"

Belle was standing at her cashier, when suddenly she blinked, as if she had remembered something. "Wait, Jeff left last week." She then heard ticking, and turned to the delivery from earlier. "Huh?" She went towards it and when she looked inside, she found not dust, but a strange machine with a timer.

…3

…2

…1

"BOOM!" Kaniks yelled as the explosion occurred, startling civilians who stared in horror at the destruction of the bomb. Kaniks cackled like the mad man he is as the twins stared at their handiwork: rocks jutting out of the ground, huge crystals of ice, lightning clouds filling the air, all due to the many dust crystals within. Araskes had insisted earlier that they take the dust for profit, but Kaniks assured her the aftermath would be worth it.

He was right.

"Huh, it does look really good."

"I told you! Now let's get this plot driving, something needs to happen to us."

All right, whatever that means. What do you have in mind little brother?"

He smiled wider than he already was, which would be really hard to do, but he pulled it off. "What do you think the Atlas military will think of two pre-teens playing outside their base?"

* * *

"They're just a couple of kids." Said an Atlas soldier with gold…

Orange.

…orange highlights standing in front of the entrance of the Atlas military base. He was tan underneath his armour, though from the bit of face revealed, it looked like he had pale parts stitched on. He was short and clearly overweight, and the donut he was eating clearly would not help.

"Yeah, but what if they're spies?" his accomplice whispered loudly. He was very narrow and tall, and had pale skin with cybernetics replacing apart of him, coincidently, or not, in the same place the other one had pale skin. His armour had maroon highlights. "I heard that you can get anyone in the slums to do anything if you pay them, Grif, and those two certainly look like slummers."

"Oh, you're just saying that because they're faunus, Simmons!" The now named Grif said. "Besides, if Sarge thinks that they're a threat, he'll just tell us to gun 'em down. Old grudges, so I've heard from Lopez."

"Yeah, well at least he takes Donut well, seeing as he's a faunus himself."

"Yeah." The two stood in silence for a few seconds before Grif spoke up again. "Hey."

"Yeah?"

"Where'd those kids go?"

Meanwhile, the twins in question were sneaking through the base trying, and failing, to hold in their giggles. Kaniks while not the first to recover, spoke first. "I can't believe we were able to take their ID's and get in without them noticing."

Araskes was still smiling, and resumed a small fit of giggles as she responded, "I didn't even use my semblance! They were just that invested in each other they didn't notice."

"FYI, Ghaul Singular does not ship Grimmons."

"What?"

"What?"

The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Kaniks spoke up. "Alright, let's go. I wanna show you something." Kaniks then began to walk off, and Araskes followed. Anybody who saw them moving throughout the base only saw and heard Grif and Simmons arguing again.

Eventually, they made their way to a room where scientists were working. Kaniks waved his sister over, and they both peeked through the window to see it. While Kaniks already knew about it, or rather her, this was the first time Araskes, or any non-military personnel had seen this. The scientists were working on an android that looked like a teenage girl, with curly ginger hair and freckles on light skin. Its eyes, which currently looked very robotic, and had green irises. She would've looked exactly like an actual human girl just sitting there bare, had it not been for her chest being open and exposing countless mechanics.

Araskes looked to her brother in awe, but he wasn't there. Suddenly, sirens began to siren throughout the base, and the scientists, alarmed, began to pack up their work and leave. Araskes then heard movement coming from down the hall, where Kaniks was being chased by an aged soldier in red highlight wielding a shotgun, a soldier in pink, LIGHTISH-RED!, highlights who was carrying a pistol in one hand and a grenade in another, and a customized Atlesian Knight made from cannibalised parts from proper models, painted brown.

"Just run Araskes!" Kaniks yelled as he came down the hall, and the Trickster joined him as they sprinted side by side, countless shotgun shells being fired behind them.

"Does that guy realise shotguns are short range?"

"Yeah, he just really likes it. Plus, he thinks he can do anything if he yells enough."

"Get over here so you can get Sarge'd!" was heard behind them.

Eventually, they found an open doorway that they quickly ducked into and sealed the door, though it was only a temporary hold against the strength of the android and the force of the man's shotgun.

"Oh my Oum, what are we gonna do Kaniks? What are we gonna do?" Araskes pleaded as she began panicking. While Araskes appeared to have steel nerves, taunting her opponents and acting carefree in the face of danger, that was only when she was able to control the situation and prepare for it. When faced with actual danger she couldn't sneak out of, she would freeze-up and turn to her 'all-knowing' brother for what to do.

"It's going to be alright Araskes, we're going to get out of this, just back to the wall with me." The Knight's arm broke through, and started looking for the handle, and Araskes was hyperventilating at this point, yet managed to do as Kaniks said.

Her back pressed against the wall firmly, the door finally opened and the veteran pointed his shotgun, "you just got…"

"Oo, the Achieve Men, they look so good on that shirt of yours." The pink one had interrupted the catchphrase, and the sergeant slumped. The brown one then began to speak in some unknown language, and the pink one responded again. "Oh, do you think I could pull off shorts like that? I think they're too…"

"Stop your yammering and let me finish!" The red one yelled, and the others stared at him silently. He sighed before aiming his weapon again. "You just got Sarge'd!"

Araskes turned to Kaniks, only to see him holding a detonator, and releasing it.

* * *

Hiraks had just arrived at the base, guarded by two men arguing over who was at fault for something, when it all went up in flames from a massive explosion. Or many small explosions simultaneously, Hiraks couldn't tell. He stared in awe at the total destruction of the area, other people screaming in panic at what had just occurred. "That was unexpected." The Mindbender took a quick moment to tithe all of the fear to Yul before heading into the ruins.

He didn't know what he was looking for, so he searched thoroughly in every hallway, room, and closet. The recovery parties that the Atlas military had clearly sent were no match against his blade. He eventually got to a room with four charred bodies and an AK missing its legs and forearms. It attempted to get away when it say Hiraks. "Well, here's one for you Reksis," he said to thin air before finishing the A.I. off.

He was about to leave the area until he saw the back wall where two of the bodies were. What he saw was a combination of amazing, confusing, satirical, and a little scary. Written out from tiny explosives prepared by Kaniks covered the wall, and it read _"Hello brother Hiraks. We are the two bodies closest to the wall. Please resurrect us and use your semblance to give Araskes the run down. Don't ask why I know this, it is because of my semblance. Please hurry. Lots of love, your little half-bro Kaniks. P.S. tell Yul I said hi."_

The dark acolyte felt his jaw drop when he finished reading. After several minutes used to compose himself, he finally opened the two canisters full of corrupted ether, and the two trails of smoke went to the two bodies. After they finished healing completely, the male awoke with a smile, asking, "what took so long?"

* * *

Ironwood was not pleased with the state his kingdom was going through now. In the last couple of months, many positives, negatives and contradictions had occurred. It all began with the deaths of Craig and Frederick Kingsworth, which opened up a way for the SDC and KWC to collaborate too closely for Ironwood's liking, as both had become exclusive almost entirely to each other. Since then, there had been the recorded deaths of a few criminals in Atlas, the Machinist and the Blind Phantom. However, the one to kill the latter turned out to be the former, who had been killed earlier. This also happened to ruin the Kingsworth funeral, which left the Schnee daughters devastated.

The lower class people had retreated to their homes, and the Hangman had seemed to have disappeared; no lantern lights at night, no victims brutally murdered, nothing. Then there was a massive decrease in both unrecorded disappearances and Grimm activity on the western border. The more paranoid people that the general knew would say that the legendary Mindbender had left, or been killed. Ironwood personally disagreed with those stories, but you can't argue with statistics. There was also a turf war involving mercenaries under the notorious Spider's command. It seemed that something had him anxious, as he had been laying low to avoid the military.

Finally, there was the devastation at Atlas Red Base. Fortunately, the development team working on P.E.N.N.Y escaped with their work, but according to the only other survivors, the front guards, they suspected kids of causing the destruction, as well as an earlier dust shop explosion.

Ironwood rubbed his temples, letting out a great sigh.

"It appears that this may not be a coincidence at all, sir."

Ironwood turned to his right, where Atlas Specialist Zavala Vanguard was. The commander was pale-skinned and bald, with a dark tattoo that began on his forehead and descended across each blue eye. The rest of his body was concealed under heavy white armour, with a red undershirt and black trousers, with a big red shoulder piece on the left arm.

Ironwood turned fully to his second as he addressed him. "I believe so too. Therefore, I am putting you in charge of dealing with them, as Strike Commander. You have any resources you need available, and full command over airships and city defences."

Zavala merely saluted, and headed off to begin preparations.

* * *

 **K: That took longer than you thought, didn't it?**

 **An: I procrastinate too much**

 **Ak: you can say that again. Good to be back in this void.**

 **An: not you too, Araskes**

 **H: Where. The hell. ARE WE!**

 **An: we'll cover that between now and next chapter. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter and the red team cameo. Of course, Rooster Teeth also owns RvB. Additionally, for clarification, all of Ozpin's secret circle are aware of Uldren, but only those two know of the Forsaken. Therefore, Ironwood would not know about the recruitment of them, and would see it only as criminal collaboration. Enough with that, because I am tired, but, few 'housekeeping' things. 1. World of Remnant is now its own story, because it's less of a one-shot, and more of a mini-series that helps drive the main plot and provide contextual information. One-shots will now only be used for snippets of situations, and Chibi style shorts that I'll eventually write, because what's a RWBY crossover without non-canon comical shorts. 2. I will be releasing chapters for another mini-series for this called Champions of Remnant, which will be a story about how other Destiny characters affect this story. I recommend reading this and WoR for the full experience of the story, and cause I like to see those views. 3. I had something for this, but I've either forgotten about it or already mentioned it, so, see you next time I guess.**


	10. Rider

**H: So let me get this straight, we are actually just story characters, and we're able to communicate with the people reading this story in this area, but when we leave, we won't remember any of this until we come back.**

 **K: Yep, except I remember all the time! Why do you think I'm so mad!**

 **H: This is gonna take a while to get used to get used to.**

 **K: Don't worry, we have 5 years our time to get used to it.**

 **A: Anyway, introducing the last baron, or should I say baroness, into the story. This isn't the end of this story though, the eight have to leave their mark on Atlas before they time-skip. So without further ado, here is Yavik's introduction.**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

Uldren stood atop a mountain. He could see the giant tower of Beacon Academy in the distance. A great lightning storm was brewing above him, but he cared not for it.

Fikrul was just showing off.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck behind Uldren, and in its place was the ex-heir, wielding _Fanatica._

"Father, I have need of your knowledge."

Uldren turned to address his son. When amber met the cold metal of Fikrul's helm, the boy removed it, showing his sapphire eyes to the world, and revealing his identity to everyone around them, which was no one, just the small Nevermores that accompanied their master.

"What do you need help with, Fanatic?" Uldren smirked at the end of is question. He found his son's alias to be quite funny when said out loud.

Brushing off the statement, Fikrul replied. "While I was away recruiting, my two eldest siblings were attacked by a criminal organization, costing one of their voices. We have learned that their leader is named the Spider, but are otherwise clueless as to who he is. Do have any information that could be of use?"

Uldren nodded his head in understanding; the Spider would be after Fikrul with his knowledge. "The Spider is an elusive criminal mastermind who runs the slums from the shadows. The military tried to stomp him out prior, but he has connections with very influential people. His semblance allows him to make contracts with individuals, which cannot be broken by anything less than death. At heart though, he is a business man, and every move he makes is calculated to benefit himself as much as possible."

"Why would he attack us then?"

"One of two things, or both, I do not know. The first is that he sees you and your siblings as a threat to his rule. Perhaps your mixed specialties would be enough to scare him off his thrown."

"And the second?"

"… Or he knows that you are the son of Craask, and that you are his nephew."

Fikrul looked up startled. Nephew? Would that make him his father's brother? Fikrul didn't question his father, only gesturing for him to continue.

"The Spider has many sources of information. Additionally, he is extremely intelligent. If anyone where to discover your identity, he would be first."

"Does this put my siblings at risk?"

"If he knows that you are his nephew, it will take even less time to discover your relationship to the others. If his intention is to have you eliminated, then I see no reason why they would be spared."

Fikrul donned his helm once again, preparing to leave. "Father, if you are a prince, no, a king, what does that make us?"

Uldren, looking out towards Beacon once again, said "my barons," and then lightning struck behind him. Uldren turned his attention to a spy he had noticed a while ago, hiding among his servants. A raven, which began its flight once Fikrul had left.

* * *

In the skies of Atlas, a high-speed chase ensues. A custom, black bullhead, labelled _Drake,_ is fleeing from two military bullheads, both having commenced firing their weapons. Inside the cargo bay of the runaways, three men, surrounded with crates of stolen Atlas tech and weapons, were yelling at each other. Or, two of them were and the third was watching.

"I can't believe you said your catchphrase so that the entire base heard Tucker!" one with a cobalt ski mask and jumpsuit shouted.

"Me, you're the one who missed one person with all of your sniper ammo Church!" a dark skinned man who was similarly dressed in turquoise? Aqua? Teal?

"Are we getting drive-thru on the way home?" an extremely tall and muscular man barely fitting his blue uniform asked innocently.

"No Caboose!" the two said together.

"Will you three shut up back there? I need to focus up here!"

The three thieves looked to the cockpit where a ten-year-old faunus girl was piloting the bullhead. She had tanned skin from her hours of labour in the sun. She had four sapphire eyes, and the beginning of what would be an impressive mohawk, dyed a dark blue. She wore a sleeveless black biker's jacket over a black undershirt, accompanied by a pair of jeans and black high-heeled biker boots. She was chewing on a piece of gum as she manoeuvred the vehicle. This was the infamous Rider, Yaviks.

Church made his way to the cockpit and sat in the co-pilot's seat. "Can you lose them?" Church asked as they were hit by another stream of bullets.

"You just focus on holding your lunch in!" As Yaviks said that, she pressed a number of buttons and pressed her palm to the dash. Suddenly, the _Drake_ was moving almost twice as fast as its pursuers. She began to circle to floating upper-city, waiting for an opportunity. At last, one of the fighters broke ranks and raced forwards, attempting to catch up to her.

Their mistake.

While most people in Remnant had a single weapon that had a ranged and melee form, Yaviks had many vehicles with multiple forms. Yaviks pressed a single button, and the bullhead began to transform, shifting into another form. Church's seat went into the hull and he fell on his ass, cursing as he went tumbling into Tucker.

At the end of the transformation, Yaviks was now piloting a tank that was slowly descending. The ambitious Atlesian went soaring past however, and Yaviks used the massive cannon to blow it into oblivion. The momentum from the cannon sent the _Drake_ spinning out of control and past the second bullhead. Yaviks shifted _Drake_ back into its bullhead form, regaining control of her spin, and locking onto the second pursuer. She fired her missiles that locked onto her target, and she pulled away, heading for the lower city. She didn't need to watch to know what would happen.

* * *

Yaviks finally landed at her personal makeshift hanger, and went into the cargo bay of _Drake_. It was obvious that the three were happy to be on land again. She opened the cargo door and the thieves began unloading their loot into a truck. When they were finished, Church approached Yaviks, giving her the job's pay. "Fifty-thousand lien for your troubles, no tip, no bonus." Yaviks took the cards, pocketing them. She then shooed the self-proclaimed 'Blue Team' exited the hanger with their plunder.

When the coast was clear, Yaviks pulled the cover off her prized possession: an extremely modified and customized motorcycle, dubbed _Freedom_ by its rider. Said bike was, like the _Drake,_ also a weapon. It had dust blasters and missiles on the front, accompanied by a large device that sprayed fire at anything in its path. The bike could shift so that the wheels tucked in, and instead utilised gravity dust devices to hover above the ground, and a fire dust device to leave fire in her tracks.

The Rider got on her prize vehicle, using the scroll system integrated into the dash to open the hanger. She sped out of the place she called home, enjoying the wind on her face. This is why she named her bike _Freedom,_ because that was what it was like to ride it, she was free.

And in more ways than one.

Until very, very recently, Yaviks and her mother were slaves to criminals, who used Yaviks' skills and semblance to make heists a cake walk, and they threatened the life of her mother if she even hesitated. There were other slaves as well, of which Yaviks had quickly befriended. Over the years, they had devised a plan to escape, and built bikes for each of them. A few weeks ago, they finally did it, and while the rest scattered, finally free of their chains, Yaviks enjoyed the wind on her face, just like now, for hours. After she got over the bliss, she had returned for her mother.

What she found was ruin.

The entire hideout was in flames, corpses littering the entrance, massacred beyond recognition. Stories told by Yaviks' mother returned. 'Be a good girl, or the Hangman will get you. What had seemed like a Boogeyman now seemed very real, as within the flames was the hulking silhouette of a man, which turned to her, slowly approaching. She had ran, and never looked back.

Now, she was convinced that the Hangman was hunting her, so she had to lay low. She had already moved her base four times, always because of some loud-mouthed customer who broke her contract. Luckily the amount of lien she charged was enough to afford the costs of the abandoned structures, plus food.

Yaviks had been deep in thought on the empty streets, recalling her few weeks of freedom, so it came as a surprise when someone fell into the street before her, and was subsequently hit by the high-speed vehicle. Yaviks, panicked, slammed her brakes, the woman going further than the bike which skidded to a halt.

Yaviks immediately got off and rushed to the woman's side, who was injured not by the collision, but by several wounds from blades and bullets. The woman had a very attractive face, pale skin, flowing red hair, plump red lips, gorgeous brown eyes… Yaviks was getting distracted. She was wearing appropriate clothing for the Atlesian winter: fur coated snow boots and a thick fur coat that covered everything except her head.

The woman looked towards Yaviks, breathe very faint, acknowledging another person was there. Yaviks asked the million-dollar question of the night. "What happened?"

The woman, tried to speak, coughing up some blood, though she managed to get a message out. "You… are t-the *cough* new w-winter maiden." She then leaned upwards, grabbing Yaviks' collar, who tried to squirm away, "Run." The woman gave her last breathe, before she finally fell back, dead.

Yaviks, even though she had seen criminals in action first-hand, was still a pre-teen, a child. So the random death of this woman in front of her, as well as the cryptic last words, scared her. She had no time to ponder on this though, as she heard the sirens of the police force coming in her direction. Not wanting to get caught and leave herself exposed for the Hangman, she quickly got back on her bike and sped away at speeds that trains would be envious of.

* * *

When the police arrived, the lights of their sirens illuminated a figure above them. He was a tall male, though he could barely be called that. He was a machine, with the soul of a man. Everything below his neck was simply mechanics that allowed him movement, etc., covered with heavy-duty armour plating. His head, while still robotic, had a face that showed emotion just like a normal man. It was orange, with multiple orange optics, giving him the look of a spider. His only clothing was an orange cloak with a fur lined hood, and strange yellow markings on it.

This was Taniks, the Scarred, Bane of the Silver-Eyed, Hunter of Maidens, and mercenary to the highest bidder.

And now he had a new target.

* * *

Yaviks got back to her home as quickly as possible. Ever since that woman had died, she had felt different, strange, as if some energy had filled her. The Rider was going to take the woman's advice of fleeing and began packing everything away. She had loaded her little possessions into _Drake,_ and was in the process of loading and strapping _Freedom_ in, when a robotic voice resonated throughout the hanger.

"I'll admit, this is a good hiding place, wouldn't have found you if you didn't lead me right here." Yaviks panicked, turning around quickly trying to find where the intruder was, when he dropped down in front of her, his robotic form startling her. "Only question is what you're hiding from."

"W-who are you? Why are you here?" Yaviks stuttered out her question, backing into the cargo bay of the bullhead.

The machine began slowly walking towards her, like an animal stalking its prey. "My name is Taniks, and you have something my employer wants."

Yaviks had been backed into the far wall of the hull, and the mercenary was still approaching her. "What is it? Money? Service? Vehicles?"

Taniks had finally reached the girl, and he drew a sword from his back, beneath his cloak. "Unfortunately for you, it's your soul." He lifted the blade up, about to bring down on the girl. In a panic, Yaviks screamed out in fear, raising her hands in defence. This triggered something in the Rider, and a sudden burst of snow and hail blasted the assailant back.

Yaviks stared at her arms in awe. 'Did she do that? Was that what he wanted?' she thought. The attack didn't keep the mercenary down for long, as he almost immediately got up. "So, your powers have awoken?" The sword he held began shifting until it looked like a hand-held cannon. "That just makes it interesting."

Yaviks ran out of the bullhead as Taniks began firing repeatedly at her. She stopped in her tracks, cocky, and held out her arms to try to do what she did before, though nothing happened. Taniks used this opening to fire at her, the fiery blast decimating her weak aura and throwing her to the wall. She fell to the floor, slouched, and Taniks approached her. "Well, it wasn't much of a fight, but that's to be expected from an untrained kid. Nothing personal." He raised his blade, about to plunge it through her, when a fist punched straight through his chest. Taniks dropped the blade which landed next to the girl as she looked up. Another fist joined it, and the robot was ripped in half.

The hulking owner of the fists threw the pieces to opposite sides of the room. Yaviks looked up at her saviour, and she felt mixed feelings of dread and confusion. This was clearly the Hangman, the chains and lantern made that clear, so she should have been pissing herself. However, one detail prevented this. The Hangman's four sapphire eyes, just like her own.

The killer reached down and picked her up bridal style with all the care in the world, and carried her to the _Drake,_ stopping only to crush Taniks' head with his foot. He entered the cockpit and place Yaviks in the pilot's seat, turning to the dash to input coordinates. When he was done, he turned to Yaviks, silently asking if she could fly them there.

She only sat up and grabbed the controls.

* * *

They had just arrived outside of a large warehouse, right on the edge of the Tangled Shore. The Hangman gestured for her to open the bay doors, and so she did. The lantern-bearer exited and approached the doors, where a four-armed faunus was leaning. Yaviks shut everything down, locking up her vehicle before jogging out to catch up. When they got to the doors, the new person, who was wearing a creepy bone helmet, addressed the Hangman. "Reksis."

'Reksis' nodded in reply, reaching for the doors. As he opened them, Yaviks felt a push in her mind as it was filled with information. So, when she saw five other spider-faunus, her siblings, she knew who each of them was, where they were, and what was happening. Reksis Vahn had rescued her, Hiraks had been waiting for them at the door and had given her this knowledge, on the couches inside, Pirrha, Kaniks and Araskes were conversing, and in an empty area, Elykris discussed things with Fikrul. They all turned when Yaviks entered, but only Fikrul stepped forward, addressing everybody there.

"Brothers and Sisters, the Scorned Barons are united at last!"

* * *

 **A: Now that the whole family's together, they can finally make a name for themselves.**

 **F: Indeed, and I have a great idea how to enact it.**

 **RV: …**

 **K: Ooooh I can't wait for Chibi chapters to finally come!**

 **A: Yeah, anyway, we hope you enjoyed. Come back next chapter to see how the Barons deal their revenge to the Spider.**


	11. Finale

**A: We are finally getting into endgame now. Soon, the Barons finally establish themselves.**

 **F: Finally, the people will know that they are protected.**

 **RV: …**

 **K: Ooo, I can' wait!**

 **E: Now things are getting interesting.**

 **Y: THE HELL ARE WE?**

 **Ak: Oh… right.**

 **P: We'll have to get her used to this.**

 **H: Don't worry, I was like that my first time as well.**

 **A: Later. For now, let's get into the story.**

 **P.S. I got to where I would have had the end, but then decided I wanted to give this story its finale. So this will be a very long chapter. I hope you enjoy it and will stick around for the main story to roll out. I just can't wait!**

 _ **Bungie owns D2 and Rooster Teeth owns RWBY ENJOY!**_

* * *

Putting it lightly, things had gone from shit, to fucking terrible.

Ironwood and Zavala were standing inside of a warehouse, looking over one half of a robotic man. It was simple to identify said person as Taniks the Scarred, a real thorn in Ozpin's side considering his choices of 'sport.'

"Is he… gone?" Zavala questioned.

Ironwood shook his head. "No, Taniks' semblance allows him to transfer his soul between machines. He's almost impossible to get rid of."

"But we can confirm that he killed the maiden?"

"Yes, but why he came here is what we need to figure out."

"I believe I can help with that." Zavala waved over some soldiers, who were bringing two captive men with them, one a shorter black man with a buzz cut, wearing a turquoise singlet and cargo pants and similar flip-flops. The other was a much taller, and much more muscular white male. He had short blonde hair that gave him a younger appearance, and he wore a blue muscle shirt and jeans. He also wore white sneakers with blue highlights, though they were both on the wrong foot and the laces were undone. "These two were apart of the robbery that happened almost an hour prior to the murder. Their accomplice ratted them out before taking his share out of the kingdom."

The two were finally brought to the military leaders, and Ironwood began questioning the two. "Why has my colleague brought you two here?"

"No idea. why am I under arrest again?" The shorter one said, clearly playing dumb.

"Tucker, it's because we stole the lien from the bank." The short one elbowed his bigger partner, though it clearly hurt him more than the giant.

Ironwood saw an advantage and took it while it was there. "What is your name… blue?"

"Oh, me? My name is Michael J. Caboose. You can call me Caboose!"

"Alright… Caboose. Is this place familiar to you?" Ironwood gestured to the warehouse around them.

Caboose seemed to be struggling to remember, his face scrunching up in concentration. Finally, he smiled, nodding. "This was the place driver lady lived!" The turquoise dressed individual slumped in defeat, knowing there was no reason to continue acting dumb.

"Who?" Zavala questioned.

The dark-skinned individual sighed before answering. "The kid we got as our pilot. Church was the one to find her. She took us here after the heist, we paid her, then we left. The place looked like her hangout, but it only looked like it was setup for a few days."

Zavala seemed to figure something out and dismissed the men. "Private Simmons, Private Grif, take these individuals to their cells." The maroon and orange armoured men nodded before taking the thieves out of the warehouse.

Ironwood turned to his accomplice. "What are you thinking?"

"I believe I can tie the individual here to the case you assigned me." Ironwood was silent, though Zavala knew that he wanted him to continue. "If I am correct, the individual that lived here was Yaviks. I theorise that after the heist, she would have driven around the city, before running into the maiden. The powers transferred to her, and she returned home in fear. Taniks followed her."

"Then how did she defeat Taniks?"

"She didn't, the Hangman did." Ironwood looked at the commander in bewilderment. "Look at Taniks' body. Ripped apart and crushed by brute force. Yaviks doesn't have the strength to do that but reports of the Hangman's attacks match this."

"So to find Yaviks, and in turn the maiden…"

"We have to find the Hangman."

* * *

Avrok was running through the halls of the Hollowed Lair. The fly faunus wore the standard uniform for an agent of the Spider. Said uniform was consisted of a 'legally acquired' Atlesian Military armour, painted in the same green colour of the Spider. Additionally, many green spines were attached to his back, for reasons unknown to Avrok. He had abandoned his helmet where he was last working, revealing his large fly eyes. In one hand he held a spear charged with lightning dust.

He turned a final corner where a large, round door stood. Avrok knew that his master was behind that door, and that he was in a _very_ important business meeting, but the Spider's life was at stake here. Running to the terminal next to the door, the faunus inputted his override code into the door controls. Hopefully his master would understand how dire the situation was. The door unlocked, and ascended into the ceiling.

Avrok entered the room, panting, and instantly dropped to one knee in a sign of submission. He waited in silence despite the urgency. There were some things the Spider would under no circumstances tolerate. After a while, the servant heard the gruff voice of his master. "Ada, we will continue this at a later date." Avrok heard footsteps echo off the metallic floor, as his master's guest left. He prayed that her exit did not meet the chaos outside.

At last, Avrok was addressed. "You better have a damn good reason for interrupting a _very_ important business discussion. The fly faunus looked up. Sitting before him on a throne, was none other than the Spider. The, unironically, spider faunus was quite clearly overweight, though he preferred the term portly. He wore green robes, with the image of a spider's face on the front. He wore white gauntlets on all four of his arms, though he had no need of them. He had slightly tan skin, with four sapphire blue eyes, a rarity as faunus generally only had a single animalistic trait. The man had greying hair, barely noticeable on his balding head, and a large grey moustache that covered his mouth. He was sitting back, relaxed, with his bottom arms crossed and upper arms inspecting a scroll, perpetually showing the ID of its former owner. Surrounding the Spider, hanging on strings or in nets, were hundreds of scrolls in an identical condition, the only difference being who was on it. Each one of these were a trophy that the Spider kept from huntsman that crossed his path. "Well? You going to say anything?"

Avrok was shaken out of his stupor by his master's voice, bowing his head in shame. Just as quickly, he rose to both feet, and answered the Spider. "Sir, we need to evacuate, immediately."

He scoffed, "What for?"

Avrok gulped. "Eight people are tearing through our defences. They're calling themselves the Eight Barons of Scorn."

* * *

Meanwhile, outside the Hollowed Lair, amid the Tangled Shore, it appeared that a war was going on. The area used to look like a normal residential area, though it would have been lined with people living on the streets. Now, the buildings had crumbled from the effects of a fight, and bodies of the Spider's servants littered the streets. Thankfully, civilians had been evacuated by the Hangman prior to the engagement. Even now, bullets were still flying through the air as the Spider's men gave one final stand to protect their home-base.

Their contracts left them helpless to do otherwise.

The men were focused on seven individuals, and yet none of them were going down, whether it was the ineffectiveness of their weaponry or the suppressing firepower of their targets, the associates simply could not stop the onslaught. The seven individuals had announced themselves as the Scorned Barons of Atlas upon arrival, or their leader did, though he had disappeared when the bullets started flying, replaced by a huge lightning storm above.

Each of the remaining barons were finishing off the faux soldiers in their own way.

The Rider, mounted on _Freedom,_ was dodging and weaving between bullets and rockets and artillery. None of it was able to hit her, as her semblance pushed her bike to unmatched speeds. The forward-facing flamethrower allowed her to simply drive into her enemies, burning those with weakened aura to a crisp, while her rear one locked the survivors in kill zones, where her bullets finished them off.

The Mad Bomber, true to his name, was throwing grenades like candy out of the pinata- "seriously? That's the best exposition you have? Let me take over. Ahem. I gleefully throw my explosives away, with all the effort of throwing away a ball of paper. Where each one lands, _BOOM,_ huge purple explosions erupt! I laugh maniacally with each one, my narration adding more fear into my enemies, already to afraid to fire less they hit the explosives on my chest!"

Riiight. Ahem, well, the Trickster remains unnoticed by the associates, but her effects are clear as day. Hidden mines, tampered equipment, rigged ammunition, all of these were causing great harm. Additionally, the soldiers would find themselves surprised, shocked, when they saw a comrade betraying them, unknowingly having been cut down by _Unseen._

The Rifleman had not been seen since the battle commenced, having retreated to the now ruined structures around them. His clones were in similar position, and they were all firing down on the unsuspecting soldiers, none of them seeing it coming. Despite the lifetime he had worked with these individuals, he held no compassion for them, as they were bound to follow the Spider till death. _Blind Phantom_ could be heard throughout the area, cutting through the rest of the chaos.

The Mindbender, never confirmed as real in Atlas, was perhaps causing the most damage. Instead of taking control of his remaining victims, he instead opened portals, letting Grimm of various shapes and sizes into the city. This incited fear in his enemies, which not only made his Grimm hungry, but the acolyte himself stronger. He used just a fraction of his dark magical abilities to use the elements against the soldiers, nothing too revealing. Additionally, any that chose to engage in close range were cut down by _Ascendance_ , pleasing the blade greatly.

While the wild Grimm were a fright, it was the Hangman that had the Spider's men shitting themselves. He moved with intentional lack of speed, giving false hope of the potential to stop him. His eternal silence burned terror into the men. They used their greatest firepower against him, a constant barrage of LMG bullets and rockets, of various dust variations, made contact, but the rage the Hangman felt for these people who had taken his voice fuelled him, empowering his aura to a point that he was almost completely unaffected. He swung _Cruel Death_ to gain momentum in his swing before bringing it down on them, and a burst of flame erupted from the lamp, destroying everything in his proximity.

The Machinist, second in command of the barons, had been coordinating her brothers and sisters in the Fanatic's absence. She had unleased a horde of scrap-knights, allowing herself space to plan the attack. Only problem was that her twin didn't seem to care the faction the robots were of. In the rare occasion that someone was able to actually shoot at her, they would be quickly ended by _Deus Ex Machina_ or _Scrapper_ depending on distance.

After a while, it seemed that the Barons had eliminated all who opposed them. They converged together, side by side and marched towards the Hollowed Lair. However, they were stopped in their tracks as large doors in the base opened, and out came a weapon none of them had seen before. Matching the theme of its owner, the vehicle looked like a spider; a round body stood on six armoured legs, with a massive cannon on top and a turret below. It began a steady march towards the seven.

"Well, that's inconvenient," the Rifleman stated blatantly.

"At least we can have some fun before the main event," piped in the Mindbender.

"Hush," the Machinist cut in. "According to my scans, the weakest points are the legs, and targeting those will force it to cool down, exposing the engine. When that happens, focus-"

The second in command was abruptly interrupted, as a massive bolt of lightning, seeming to be a culmination of the entire storm above, came down upon the walker. Said weapon was instantly vaporised, every part of it completely eradicated on an atomic level. The Machinist and Rider visibly slumped, both clearly interested in salvaging the mechanical behemoth.

Less disappointing however, was the figure that stood in the place of the walker. Standing there, leaning on _Fanatica,_ was the Fanatic, leader of the Scorned Barons. His brethren approached him, kneeling before the first-born. "Rise, my brothers and sisters. It is time we got what we came here for."

* * *

The eight were walking through the now empty halls of the Hollowed Lair. It was obvious that the place had been quickly evacuated; apparently the Spider wasn't willing to give up all of his men. The Rifleman was guiding his siblings, as he had lived here nearly his whole life, and had made the journey to the 'throne room' too many times to count. The Phantom signalled for the group to stop, gesturing at the door next to them. The Machinist held out her palm, and the door instantly opened.

The eight came into the room, sacked of all its previous possessions sans two items: the throne, and a scroll that rested on it. The Fanatic approached it, seeing that a contact us already selected, and all he had to do was press call. A hologram emerged from the scroll, making a replica of the Spider fill the throne.

"Hmph, so you are the rascals that have upturned decades of work. I thought so." The Spider spoke with an air to him, like he was untouchable. The Fanatic began to have a conversation with the deal-maker.

"So, you are the one who has manipulated the vulnerable of this kingdom? Assaulted my brethren in my absence? You are the embodiment of the things we have vowed to destroy."

"Oh really? _You_ are the justified one here? The 'divine saviour' of the people?"

"More so than any other man in this foul kingdom."

"…"

"…"

The Spider's image grinned. "Well, I don't see why we have to be enemies, as long as we stay out of each other's hair, so to say, _nephew."_

The rest of the Scorn, sans Kaniks, began to mutter between themselves. This was their uncle? It made sense, they all shared a faunus trait. This also opened the possibility of this man knowing about their biological father, a topic their leader only briefly spoke of.

"So, what Father told me was true. I assume that your stunt at our home was a by-product of this knowledge?"

"Of course, _Fikrul_! I wouldn't waste men on mere children. Besides, only the children of Craask Forsaken could pose a threat to my operations, and here you all are, overachievers."

"…"

"Well, you gonna say anything, boy?"

Fikrul seemed hesitant, looking back at his siblings. The offer he was about to present wasn't going to sit with all of them. "It is apparent to me that we will only hinder each other, unless we come to a mutual agreement. I'm sure that you have sensitive information on all of us, so I offer you this." Fikrul stood tall, showing he was not willing to submit to other terms. "You will leave us to our own agenda, allow us to have the Tangled Shore, and keep all information you have, or will get, to yourself. In return, we will not actively attack you."

The deal was outrageously one-sided, and Pirrha 'looked' at the eldest like he was a madman. No one had ever proposed such an absurd offer to the Spider. No one had even _proposed_ an idea to the Spider. His previous master, however, was going to surprise him. "While I acknowledge your… advantage in this situation, I cannot afford any more of my resources on you. Therefore, I will have to concede to your terms. I'll even sweeten the deal by giving you information that is… desirable to some of you."

Pirrha's jaw dropped to the floor. A quick look around showed his siblings, except Kaniks, who was just smiling like he knew this was all going to happen, in similar states as him. He turned back to Fikrul, who crossed his lower arms, one of them holding his chin in mocking thought. "I suppose that works. Very well _uncle,_ what information do you have for us."

The Spider smiled, before addressing each one of them individually.

"Yaviks. I know that you have acquired a new set of powers before your initiation. Those are the powers of the Winter Maiden. It will give you powerful magical abilities, but you cannot freely use them. Many powerful people in this world desire your power, and the mercenary you encountered wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. However, your Hiraks will be able to teach you."

"Kaniks. I literally have nothing to tell you. According to my knowledge, you seem to know everything that has or will happen. I will give you advice, though I'm sure it's irrelevant. Never give too much information to _anyone._ "

"Araskes. I have sent to your home a list that contains a very large amount of people who could benefit, or suffer, from your semblance. Additionally, some advice. You may conceal yourself out of fear, and you should. You can be whoever you want to the outside world, but never let them know who _you_ are, because then you are truly vulnerable."

"Pirrha. Our relationship has been strained over the years, and I think you've earned the story of how you came under my care. You were born with a very rare… abnormality. You had silver eyes. Hiraks can tell you more about them, but it matters not. Their properties are nullified. Do know this though: your eyes were taken by Taniks, and he still has them as a prize. If you want revenge, you can seek it."

"Hiraks. There is not much that you don't know, or can't find out, so I'll simply remove the hassle of finding the sources yourself. According to some of my 'friends,' mysterious architecture has been found frozen in the north-most part of Mantle. Additionally, similar markings have been found on a chunk of lunar rock currently held in a museum in Atlas. I imagine it has to do with magic."

"Reksis. Vahn. Take this with a grain of salt, as you may not be able to do anything about it. Certain records I had legally acquired provide evidence that it may have been Jacques Schnee who ordered the abduction of children when you were a boy. While I imagine it is near impossible to get to him, you can still free the slaves he took."

"Elykris. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised when you return home to find that you have access to a wide range of my business partners, all of which deal with not-so-legal technology. Something you may be very interested in."

"And Fikrul. I question you. How long do you think you can keep your other half hidden? Will you be prepared for what the world will think when they see who is under that helmet? Trust me when I say I will never betray your secrecy, but I advise that you don't keep that curtain closed."

While the Barons absorbed their information differently, some gleefully, some angrily, some sombrely, Fikrul addressed his uncle with another question instead. "Did you deal with my father?"

"Yes."

"Well, then, I know that I can't doubt you then. Thank you, Spider. This won't be the last you hear of us." Fikrul shot electricity at the scroll, the hologram dissipating. He then banged _Fanatica_ onto the floor, the loud ring bringing his siblings to order. "Brothers and sisters, he addressed, "now is the time that the world learns what they're dealing with."

* * *

Willow Schnee had enough of this shit.

This summed up her attitude quite well as she marched down the halls of the Schnee Manor, alcohol in hand. She was heading to her private study where she could drink till she passed out, something she had been doing a lot lately. But what was the cause of her distress this time? Well, quite a few things.

For starters, her husband had been colluding an awful lot with Mara Kingsworth, so much so that an outsider would probably see the two companies as one. While she would have initially been happy with this a few months ago, that would only have been if Craig was in charge. Ever since the death of him and Frederick, the integrity of the KWC had been going down, and the once noble, generous and considerate organisation was now clearly corrupt, and Jacques was letting the SDC go down with it, all for the money.

Secondly, the events that had occurred in Atlas recently. Every man, woman, and child had reason to be scared, for the horrific events that had somehow been recorded. The day before, one extremely dedicated news station was able to get footage of the horrific battle that had taken place in the Atlesian slums. Many, many blocks of the poorer city had been levelled in a battle between some sort of private militia and eight criminals. Somehow, the soldiers didn't stand a chance. Now that area was being completely controlled by a group calling themselves the Scorned Barons of Atlas, and it was clear as day that they were extending their control to the rest of lower Atlas. It was near impossible to have an official control down there; the military was destroyed on site, facilities looted. It had become a lawless frontier.

In her deep thought, Willow had not noticed that she had arrived at her study a few minutes ago and had been simply standing in front of the locked door. Shaking her head out of thought, she got her key out and unlocked the door; after all, she wasn't her to think. She opened the door and quickly went inside, turning around to lock herself in.

"You know, drinking like this isn't going to stop what's happening outside." Willow spun around, holding her bottle out towards the source of the voice, as if it was an effective weapon. The owner of the voice was currently sitting in the chair of the study. He was a faunus with four arms, two on each side. He wore a peculiar helmet, that concealed his entire head, and had protrusions she could only describe as antlers. On his right, he held a staff that was _very_ familiar to the Schnee matriarch: the staff of the late Kingsworths.

She continued to hold the bottle out, but no attack came from the intruder. Instead, the faunus chuckled. "There is no need for violence. Not here, or now, at least. Please, take a seat." The man gestured to the chair opposite where Willow would have sat, her normal chair occupied by the masked man. Not wanting to make a commotion, she did as she was told.

"How did you get that staff?" Willow began aggressively. The staff had been lost the night of the Kingsworth murder, presumably taken by the assailants. Which, in Willow's mind, left one possibility for who this man was. "Are you the one who killed Frederick Kingsworth?"

The helmeted man looked at the crystal of the staff, before once again laughing. "No, no, I was not the murderer. I was, however, present when it happened. Let us not dwell on the past however. I have come here to propose an idea to you."

"Why would I align with a criminal?"

"Your husband does." He said it so smugly, and Willow took great offence from that, but after a pause, she was surprised what came from him next. "I apologise. That was… insensitive. I will refrain from doing that again."

"…"

"Ahem. Well, if it makes you more comfortable in discussion, perhaps I should give you a familiar face to converse with." As he said that, the man opposite her reached for his helmet, removing it. Willow gasped.

* * *

Ironwood was having a rough time comprehending what had happened.

First, the multiple incidents that the general had assigned Commander Zavala, who had eventually come to the conclusion that they were all connected, had caused multiple cases of damage and other tedious such things that had to be cleaned up.

Then, more privately, the Winter Maiden had been lost, now most likely aligned with the same criminals under Zavala's investigation. Ironwood was wrapping his head around why Ozpin had been so calm when he told him. Surprised, yes. Shocked, yes. But angered, no. The Valesian headmaster clearly had something up his sleeve he wasn't sharing.

Lastly, and the reason the Atlesian Council had called an emergency meeting, was the massive damage to lower Atlas. The Tangled Shore, a place that previously the military had never been able to enter due to the Spider's influence, had been completely levelled, its master dethroned, and its border's extended. Now, its new masters had enforced its rule across all of lower Atlas, and for a reason unknown to Ironwood, the people welcomed its new leaders.

As already stated, due to growing fear in the kingdom, as well as the situation reaching a critical importance level, the Atlesian Council had decided to hold a meeting regarding the situations. In order to quell the people, they had it recorded live and put on every channel in the kingdom.

If only they knew that it was a trap.

Currently, the 'Barons of Scorn,' the masterminds behind the assault on the Spider, had intruded upon the meeting, and were holding all of the members captive, Ironwood included. All of their security had either been killed or hacked. Seven of the Barons had made an appearance so far. They had arrived in a bullhead piloted by the Rider, who now orbited the facility. The rest of the members, sans the Hangman, had infiltrated the building, wreaking havoc until the got to the meeting chambers. From there, the Fanatic, who had announced himself as the leader of the Barons to all of Atlas. He and the Mad Bomber then left to address the people from another location. The Trickster, the Rifleman, the Mindbender and the Machinist, who was left in charge, kept all the councilmen where they were. Apparently, they had something they wanted to show everyone in Atlas.

One council member, an aristocrat who worked in the banking industry, couldn't keep his cool and expressed his outrage. "How dare you hold us like this you animals! We I get out of here, I will send an army to hunt you down!"

This drew the attention of all the Barons, who prior to that outburst had been either watching or talking, and the acolyte addressed the man, leaning on his sword. "Animals? You're talking to the last student of Yul. I bet you've never heard of him."

"I don't give a damn about the wretch that trained you, _bug!_ "

This seemed to get the Mindbender annoyed, and his siblings looked on in mild amusement. The magic-user got off his sword, and as he spoke, shifted it into its ranged form. "Bug? You call _me_ bug. You are just an insignificant _insect_ in the grand design that is the universe. All of you are. And I? The universe will mourn the day I die, so never, _ever_ think I'm insignificant!" He turned to his older sister, who only nodded. He turned back to the banker, raised _Ascendance_ and shot him. "And _never_ disgrace the name of Yul!" Least to say, the council, now a member down, kept their mouths shut until the 'main event' began.

They didn't have to wait long.

Soon enough, the screens lighted up, giving the council a zoomed in view of the Fanatic, standing before a congregation of the lower class of Atlas; the mob cheered as they awaited their 'saviour's' words. The present Barons turned to look at the screens as well, the hacked knights keeping guard of the prisoners. The commandeered news camera was shaking, and the audience could hear maniacal laughter in time with it. The Mad Bomber poking his head over and addressing the people watching, which was everyone in Atlas with a scroll, confirmed who was filming the presentation.

"Hellooo Atlas! Are you all as excited as me? Oh certainly not! It is a shame that we lost one of our viewers, but what is a drop of water in the sea? Ooo, hush now, hush! Fanatic is starting hehehe!"

Indeed, as the all knowing mad-man said, the leader of the Barons was indeed beginning his speech to all of Atlas. He raised his staff and brought down on his raised platform, the clang accented by the boom of thunder. All was silent.

"People of Atlas. I, am the Fanatic, leader of the Scorned Barons of Atlas. And I am here to usher in a new order, a new age. For too long, this kingdom has been poisoned, poisoned by those who would use their wealth, and their influence, and their inheritance to control others. You who stand before me know what I speak of. Like my brothers and my siblings and myself, you have been scorned, _forsaken_ by the ones who swore to protect you. No more shall we stand for this.

The Barons of Atlas have taken it upon themselves to protect those of you that live down to Remnant, while those who drown in their wealth high above us will suffer if they even set foot down here. We will be your angels of death and vengeance, bringing true justice to the crimes committed against us. One such crime, happened nearly a decade ago, when our streets were invaded by a now-nameless man behind an army of metal. Prior to yesterday, I had though that the Hangman, a protector of Atlas and a fellow Baron, had avenged those who were taken and those who were robbed by slaughtering that man, but I was wrong. New information has come to my attention."

People were murmuring between themselves; they had come to recognise the Hangman as a hero who did not tolerate the evil of the aristocrats, so for him to associate with the Barons had almost sealed their loyalty. Many screens behind the Fanatic switched on, all showing a contract detailing payment for the delivery of child workers to dust mines. However, a few key details in the document had people all over Atlas reeling in shock.

"It is as you see it. Jacques Schnee paid for hundreds of children to be abducted and delivered to SDC mines all over the globe. Those children have either died, or are still enslaved under his tyrannical rule." All of the council's eyes were on the Schnee patriarch. Ironwood knew that Jacques wasn't the best morally, but this was a whole nother level. "However, despite the obvious evil this is, it has already been dealt with."

An outrage erupted in the congregation, and viewers across the kingdom looked on in confusing. Even the Barons seemed shocked, though the Bomber clearly knew something they did not, as the camera began shaking violently with his laughter. The Fanatic silenced the crowd with another boom of thunder.

"All of the crimes of the upper class thus far have been forgiven, for one individual has agreed to take upon her shoulders the sins of this kingdom. Despite her innocence, despite her charitable ways, despite her _vision,_ this woman has watched her company grow into something it wasn't made to be." The Hangman emerged from curtains that hung behind the lead Baron, and he carried a massive cross over his shoulder. It appeared someone was nailed to it. He planted it in the ground, so that all in Atlas could see this scapegoat, bloodied and dressed in rags, hands and feet nailed to the wood, and the Atlesians all displayed signs of shock.

"Willow Schnee, convicted only of negligence of the SDC, shall take the punishment of this kingdom. And with her blood, we shall be reborn!"

* * *

"Frederick?" asked Willow softly. Indeed, the now revealed teenager before the matriarch resembled the heir identically, though he had grown a little. The Kingsworth place his helmet on the desk, before crossing his lower arms on the table and leaning forward.

"Yes, and I know you have questions, but I'll simply say this. The name I was born with was Fikrul Forsaken, born to Craask Forsaken and Mara Sov. However, in order to maintain my… credibility in Atlas, I had to hide my faunus trait, and undertake a human name."

"Frederick Kingsworth."

Yes, and for years I lived that way, until the day of my death. I'll skip the specifications, but on that day, I dropped the Frederick persona, the lighter half of Fikrul, and embraced my inner darkness. Now, the public knows me as the Fanatic, a ruthless faunus who claims to fight for justice."

"But, why have you come here, after all this time? We mourned you, Winter mourned you."

Fikrul chuckled. "I see that my affection for her was not easily concealed, nor hers for me. Well, I have left that life behind. The key qualities that made Frederick are still the building blocks for me, but now I can truly express myself."

"O-okay, but, you still didn't answer my question."

"Of course. As I said, I wish to offer a deal of sorts. It is no secret to me that under Jacques rule, your father's company has suffered morally, straying from the vision he once had. I wish to give you a way to redeem it, in a way, while also ensuring it stays far away from the dark path it is on now."

Willow's eyes widened attentively. Redeem her company? That would be a dream come true for her right now. It would guarantee that her children had a bright future to look forward to instead of what Jacques had created. So of course, to say the least, she was interested. "R-really? You can redeem the SDC? How so?"

Fikrul paused, hesitating to continue. He finally swallowed his nerves and sat up straight, very professional like. "Ahem. It would redeem your company in a way. What I am thinking is that someone takes punishment for all the misdeeds done by not only the SDC, but all unethical and immoral organisations in Atlas. It would have to be someone important in the eyes of the aristocrats, in order to have relevance and impact on the upper class, while also inciting fear in the corrupt."

"But… who would take on such a burden?" Fikrul looked down at his fidgeting hands, and the Schnee matriarch got a sinking feeling who he had in mind. Willow contemplated what her life had become lately; she was depressed, neglectful of her children, ignorant to the obvious crimes of her husband, and drank herself to sleep every night. With an air of determination, and her mind set on her decision, she interrupted Fikrul before he could continue with the obvious.

"I'll do it. I'll be your sacrificial lamb."

* * *

Winter was watching the ordeal on the television alone. Originally, she had been accompanied by her siblings and Klein, as they were going to watch the council meeting that her father was attending. Their mother was not present, but Winter had drawn it up as her drinking herself under the table last night.

When the conference was hijacked, Winter had ordered Klein to take Weiss and Whitley away so that they couldn't watch, while she herself stayed. She watched the speech from this 'baron,' filled with anger and presumptions as he held the staff that rightfully belonged to her deceased crush. Her reactions were quite similar to her fellow citizens during crucial parts of the sermon, including when her father's _disgusting_ actions had been revealed, but the moment that she was crushed was when she saw her mother being persecuted, according to the delusional faunus, 'voluntarily.' She collapsed to her knees before the screen and wept. In her mind, this man had not only taken away the life of her mother, but the life of Frederick Kingsworth.

"I swear, Fanatic. One day, I will avenge my loved ones. You will pay, and I will have revenge."

* * *

Zavala was standing in his control room, monitoring the actions of his men across the globe. His was startled out of his focus when a feminine voice addressed him. "Sir, the Atlas Specialist will be arriving shortly." He turned to the owner of the voice. She was short, in a classic Atlas military uniform. She held her magenta hair to the left side of her head in a bun, partially covering an eyepatch over her left eye, while her sapphire right one seemed to glow.

"Thank you, Petra. Does she know what task we have for her?"

"Yes I do." Zavala turned fully around now, seeing the 'new recruit' come in.

"Ah, Specialist Schnee. Right on time as usual, from what I've been told. Tell me, do you understand what we do in this facility?"

"Yes sir," Winter said, holding her hand to her head in a salute. Her eyes narrowed in determination. "We hunt the Barons."

* * *

 **A/N: And that's it for the pre-five-year gap. Thank you all for joining me with this project, and I'm super appreciative. I hope you will stay with me as I merge these characters with the main plot of RWBY. I hope for my own sake that there is nothing in this chapter that needs editing, because that will just be the end of me. I hope this provided good context for the main story, cause that was the whole point, basically. I think I'll hold off on starting on the main story for a while, simply to refresh, but I will still work on the three other stories for this series. If you want to know what they're about, I'll talk about below, but otherwise, thank you so much, and I'll see you at Beacon.**

 **Scorned of Beacon Shorts: this is where I'll put funny or less plot driven shorts for the story. This will include stuff like "what happened during between these events?" and "how did this character get here?" as well as being a place where I'll hopefully put some non-canonical Chibi-like skits.**

 **Scorned of Beacon World of Remnant: this is where I'll have WoR style stories, talking about the history of Remnant from (predominately) the perspective of Yul. This is a story I recommend reading as I plan for it to provide major context in the SoB world, such as civilisations or events that are destiny related in origin.**

 **Scorned of Beacon Champions of Remnant: this is almost exactly like WoR, except that it focuses on characters rather than events. As of writing this, I currently have my version of the Rezyl Azzir/Dredgen Yor story, and for what I have planned for the main story, those two at least are crucial.**


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